Department for Transport

Roads: Repairs and Maintenance

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of likely spending by his Department on road repairs in each year between 2015 and 2020.

Andrew Jones: I refer my Honourable Friend to my answer dated 3 June 2015, UIN 365 (http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=365).

Shipping: Londonderry

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether on any occasion under-qualified pilots have been provided in the compulsory pilotage area at Londonderry Port.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department does not hold this information.

Shipping: Registration

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of global shipping tonnage was registered in the UK in each of the last five years.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The proportion of global shipping gross tonnage (GT) registered in the UK in each of the last five years is shown below:201020112012201320142015 to July 2015World Fleet (million GT)959.210361094113411751193.0UK Fleet (million GT)17.517.917.615.113.814.2UK % of World Fleet1.8%1.7%1.6%1.3%1.2%1.2%These figures are for ships over 100GT. Figures for the size of the world fleet are not recorded by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and come from Clarksons.

Night Flying: Noise

Jim Fitzpatrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what regulatory arrangements require airlines to use the quietest aircraft for early morning and late night flights into London's airports; and by what means are those arrangements enforced.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Government sets night flight restrictions at the three busiest London airports; Heathrow, Gatwick and Stansted, which are designated for noise control purposes under the Civil Aviation Act 1982. As well as limiting the number of movements allowed within an airline season, these restrictions place requirements on the aircraft that can operate during the night period, and place seasonal limits on the amount of noise energy that can be emitted at each airport.All aircraft are given a Quota Count (QC) number based on their noise during take-off and landing, with the noisier aircraft given a higher QC rating. QC/4 aircraft are not allowed to be scheduled during the night quota period (2330 to 0600), and the highest rated QC/8 and QC/16 aircraft are prevented from operating at all during the entire night period (2300 to 0700).Each airport is given a seasonal noise quota, with aircraft with higher QC ratings using more of this quota per movement. The noise quota limit is designed to encourage the use of quieter aircraft by allowing airports to maximise the number of movements during any season through the use of aircraft with a lower quota count.The Government regularly monitors the movement and noise quota usage at all three airports, including restrictions on the noisiest aircraft, to ensure compliance. It should be noted that these restrictions do not preclude noisier aircraft from using these airports in the case of emergencies or severe disruption, or with prior Government approval, such as for disaster relief flights.The Government does not set night restrictions at any of London’s other international airports, but these operate their own restrictions, which are usually agreed as planning conditions:London Luton has a similar night noise regime to that in place at the designated airports. This limits the number of flights that can take place between and 2330 and 0600 and prohibits aircraft with a QC rating of greater than 2 from operating between 2300 and 0700.London City Airport does not operate flights between 2200 and 0630 from Sunday to Saturday morning, nor any flights between 1230 Saturday and 1230 Sunday.London Southend sets a limit of 120 night movements per month in the period 2300 to 0630 and, in addition, prohibits any scheduled movements by aircraft with a QC rating of greater than 1 or by helicopters.Enforcement at these airports is a matter between airlines and the airport, or the local planning authority if relevant.It should also be noted that airports are able to incentivise airlines to use their quietest aircraft during the night and early morning by charging higher landing fees for noisier planes at these times.

Shipping: Londonderry

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of pilotage standards at Londonderry Port.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Competent Harbour Authorities, such as the Londonderry Port & Harbour Commissioners, have a statutory duty to determine what pilotage services need to be provided to secure the safety of ships navigating their waters, and may authorise those persons they consider suitably qualified to act as pilots. The Department has no power to oversee or direct them in their execution of these duties.

Rolling Stock: Procurement

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on implementing plans for new IEP and Thameslink rolling stock.

Claire Perry: Implementation plans for both fleets are making good progress. Hitachi Rail’s Class 800/801 IEP train manufacturing facility was opened by the Prime Minister on 3 September, IEP depot construction continues as planned and testing of the three IEP test trains continues on the East Coast Main Line. In terms of Thameslink, Siemens has delivered the first two Class 700 trains and the Secretary of State opened the new Thameslink Programme Three Bridges traincare facility on 15 October. The first Class 700s trains are planned to enter passenger service, as planned, in Spring 2016.

Motorways: Speed Limits

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will increase the speed limit on motorways to 80 mph; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will estimate the effect on (a) fuel consumption and (b) tax receipts of a 10 mph increase in the speed limit.

Andrew Jones: There are no plans to increase the motorway speed limit to 80 mph or to increase national speed limits by 10mph. There are no available estimates of the effect such increases would have on fuel consumption or tax receipts.The focus of government policy on our road network is the delivery of a step change in investment.

Roads: Rural Areas

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he plans to take to improve the condition of rural roads.

Andrew Jones: I refer my Honourable Friend to my answer dated 22 October 2015, UIN 12071(http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-questions-answers/?page=1&max=20&questiontype=AllQuestions&house=commons%2clords&uin=12071).

Motor Vehicles: Fuels

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of the viability of the use of E10 fuel in older vehicles and motorcycles.

Andrew Jones: The content of road transport fuel is governed by a combination of legislation and industry fuel standards, specifically the Motor Fuel (Composition and Content) Regulations and a European industry standard, in the case of petrol this is EN228. The EN specification incorporates the statutory requirements. The standards, and their maintenance, are industry agreed and informed by industry testing.Petrol currently sold in the UK may contain up to 5% ethanol (known as ‘E5’). A revised industry fuel standard for petrol (EN228) was agreed and published by the British Standards Institution in 2013. This allows up to 10% bioethanol content (known as ‘E10’). This means that fuel suppliers are free to supply petrol containing anything from 0-10% bioethanol.Most petrol sold in the UK is E5 and therefore contains up to 5% bioethanol. E10 is not yet on sale in the UK.Any decision to supply E10 is a commercial decision for fuel suppliers and we are not aware of any with immediate plans to introduce E10 into the UK. The Governmentrecognises the concerns of owners of some older vehicles and motorcycles that may not be compatible with E10, and the Department for Transport is in regular contact with fuel suppliers who in turn have been asked to write to us to give at least three months’ notice of plans to introduce this fuel. As yet no suppliers have indicated they have any immediate plans to introduce E10.The Department is also in regular contact with the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) who provide advice and data concerning the compatibility of UK petrol vehicles with E10 - which we are carefully monitoring.The Motor Fuel (Composition and Content) Regulations 1999 were amended in 2010 to comply with EU Directive 2009/30/EC which requires the UK Government to ensure that petrol with a maximum ethanol content of 5% remained available until the end of 2013. This mechanism was extended in 2013 in the UK to ensure that E5 continues to be available until the end of 2016.

Roads: Barnet

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support his Department provides to the London Borough of Barnet for the upkeep of local roads.

Andrew Jones: This Department does not provide direct funding to the London Borough of Barnet for the upkeep of local roads. We do, however, provide funding to Transport for London (TfL) each year, which for 2015/16 we have provided a grant of £1.5bn, part of which TfL in turn passes to the boroughs for spending on road maintenance and improvement.

Shipping: Registration

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the proportion of global shipping tonnage that will be registered in the UK in 2020.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Department has not produced estimates of the future size of the UK Ship Register (UKSR). The Government is committed to supporting the UK maritime sector and improving the UKSR. The Maritime Growth Study, published on 7 September 2015, contained a number of recommendations relating to the ship register.The Government will respond formally to the report by the end of 2015, but is taking immediate action in response to some recommendations. This includes the establishment of a Ministerial Working Group for Maritime Growth and taking steps to support the improved operation of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) such as appointing a commercial director to lead the UKSR separately from the Agency’s regulatory functions and a business case exploring the costs and benefits of options for more significant reform of the MCA.

Roads

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what comparative assessment he has made of which countries have the most miles of road per (a) capita of population and (b) driver.

Andrew Jones: The Department for Transport (DfT) does not routinely report or assess the miles of road per capita (population) or miles of road per driver for the UK or other countries.The European Commission publishes data on road lengths, population and stock of registered passenger cars for the 28 countries in the EU as well as countries in the European Free Trade Association and candidate countries. International data on drivers are not published alongside this. The data can be accessed via the following link: http://ec.europa.eu/transport/facts-fundings/statistics/doc/2015/pocketbook2015.pdf.These represent the latest data year available for international comparison. However, DFT have published 2014 statistics for road length in Great Britain and 2014 annual passenger cars data for Great Britain and the UK.

Railways: Sheffield

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reasons the Sheffield City Region has not been involved in the Hendy review.

Andrew Jones: The Secretary of State has asked Sir Peter Hendy, as the new chair of Network Rail, to report to him this autumn with a proposal for re-planning the Control Period 5 enhancements (which covers the period 2014-2019) in a way that is efficient, deliverable and affordable. Sir Peter Hendy is engaging with stakeholders, including Sheffield City Region, and taking the views of industry into account as part of the wider context for his re-plan.

Fuels: Prices

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions Ministers or officials have had with HM Treasury regarding the disparity between diesel and petrol prices in the last three months.

Andrew Jones: Ministers and officials meet regularly with HM Treasury on a wide range of issues.

Cycling: Greater London

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has for cyclists in London to undergo a safety training course for their own and pedestrians' protection.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Policy for cycle training in London is devolved to Transport for London (TfL). All London boroughs offer free or heavily subsidised child and adult cycle training to anyone who lives, works or studies in London. TfL funds cycle training through the boroughs’ Local Implementation Plan (LIP), Borough Cycling Programme and other funding streams.TfL works closely with the London boroughs and the cycle training industry to ensure all cycle training delivered in London complies with the national standards set by the Department of Transport (DfT). Children (under 16’s) are offered DfT’s nationally recognised ‘Bikeability’ cycle training.TfL also provides free adult cycle training to London employees through the Cycling Workplaces programme. This scheme offers organisations in London with five or more employees a range of cycling goods and services to help kick-start cycling in the workplace and encourage more people to commute by bike. Employers can request “Commuter Cycle Skills Sessions” (cycle training) for their employees. In addition to cycle training, businesses can order cycle safety seminars, cycle parking and cycle safety and security checks for their employee’s bikes through the online scheme.

Civil Aviation Authority

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will instruct the Civil Aviation Authority to respond to the Mott Macdonald report 2012 submitted to the Ministry of Defence; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The Mott Macdonald report was produced for the Ministry of Defence and sets out the position at RAF Northolt in 2012. The Ministry of Defence has not asked the Civil Aviation Authority to comment on the report.The situation at Northolt has moved on since the report was published in 2012. The CAA is reviewing certain aspects of the safety of operations at the aerodrome. This review will conclude shortly and, if necessary, appropriate action could be taken in respect of civil operations.

Ports: EU Action

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the Government's policy is on the proposed EU Port Services Regulations; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Robert Goodwill: While the Government does not believe that the Proposal is necessary in respect of the UK’s proven competitive market based port sector, we achieved numerous significant improvements in the Council General Approach text agreed on 8 October 2014. The Regulation is now under active consideration by the European Parliament, and the Government will seek to defend those improvements against any amendments that would by comparison tend to increase the regulatory impact on UK ports.

Motor Vehicles: Registration

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress has been made on the DVLA's investigation into the proper registration of historic vehicles in the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) is currently carrying out a targeted exercise involving a small number of historic vehicles. This is in response to concerns expressed to the DVLA that a number of newly built replica vehicles had been incorrectly registered as historic vehicles.The DVLA has advised 30 vehicle keepers that, following consideration of the evidence provided, their registrations are correct. A number of keepers have advised the DVLA that they are in the process of gathering the required information.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps the Government is taking to tackle the rising cost of motor insurance.

Andrew Jones: A combination of legislative changes and working with stakeholders on reducing the frequency and cost of personal injury claims resulted in a 14% drop in average insurance premiums between 2012 and 2014.This Government is determined to continue working with the insurance industry to tackle uninsured driving and reduce the cost of motor insurance.

British Transport Police: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British Transport Police officers there were in London on 1 October (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

British Transport Police: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British Transport Police officers in London were contracted to work night shifts as at 1 October (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

British Transport Police: Greater London

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many British Transport Police officers were working night shifts in London on each day of September 2015.

Claire Perry: The Department for Transport has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Railways: South East

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when his Department plans to appoint the consultant for the London and South Coast rail corridor study.

Claire Perry: The Department appointed the consultant for the London and South Coast Rail Corridor Study in September. In October, the Government published the Study Terms of Reference on its website. Ministers anticipate receiving the findings by the end of 2015.

Railways: South East

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when he expects the London and South Coast rail corridor study to be published.

Claire Perry: The Department anticipates receiving the findings of the London and South Coast Rail Corridor Study by the end of 2015. The Government will subsequently consider the timeframe for releasing the study findings, including our response.

Roads

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has carried out of the ability of road infrastructure to meet future demand; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Road Investment Strategy (RIS) published in December 2014 sets out how £15.2 billion is being invested between 2015 and 2021 to improve the Strategic Road Network (SRN) - motorways and major ‘A’ roads in England. The RIS takes into account a range of possible outcomes for the future, underpinned by broad evidence which the Department will continue to build on and review. This includes an assessment of the trends that are likely to have a significant impact on road use and what these trends mean for traffic volumes on the SRN.On the local road network it is for local highway authorities to make assessments of need and consider improvements.

Railways: Finance

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2015 to Question 12539, whether the meeting of the Board Investment and Commercial Committee on 23 March 2015 was attended by (a) Ministers in his Department, (b) special advisers in his Department and (c) officials in the Senior Civil Service grades.

Claire Perry: The 23 March Board Investment and Commercial Committee ‎meeting was attended by senior officials from the Department for Transport. No Ministers or advisers were present.

Railways

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2015 to Question 12538, and with reference to the statement in the Answer of 21 September 2015 to Question 10029 that Ely to Soham track doubling was among a small number of schemes that had been paused by Network Rail, which other schemes were paused by Network Rail.

Claire Perry: The Secretary of State announced on 25 June 2015 the pause of work on Midland Main Line electrification and TransPennine electrification. Network Rail subsequently announced to stakeholders that it was pausing work on Ely to Soham track doubling. No other pauses have been announced.Any further changes to Network Rail’s delivery plans will be announced as part of the outcome of Sir Peter Hendy’s review.

Bus Services: Schools

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 23 October 2015 to Question 12213, whether his Department has imposed any penalties on bus operators who submitted ineligible claims for Bus Service Operators Grant support for closed school bus services.

Andrew Jones: Further to my answers to earlier questions of 15 and 23 October (questions 11430 and 12213) on the subject of claims for Bus Service Operator Grant for school services, where we have identified claims in the past for closed school services these have been disallowed. However, as was made clear in the letter which my officials have sent recently to all operators, my Department will take the strongest possible measures against any operator who knowingly claims for such ineligible services in future.

Great Western Railway Line: Electrification

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when Network Rail first informed his Department of their estimate that electrification of the Great Western Main Line would cost more than £2 billion.

Claire Perry: In June 2015, as part of the affordability review exercise, Network Rail informed Department that the latest estimated cost of Great Western electrification was around £2.4bn. This forecast costs remained uncertain and further work was required to validate this figure. The validation is being undertaken as part of the Hendy review and we await the publication in the Autumn.

Bus Services: Finance

Lilian Greenwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's expenditure on the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) was in each year from 2010-11 to 2014-15; and what his Department's projected expenditure on the BSOG is in 2015-16.

Andrew Jones: Total expenditure on the Bus Service Operators Grant (BSOG) in each year from 2010-11 to 2014-15 in accrual terms and rounded to the nearest £million is set out below.2010-11 £445m2011-12 £441m2012-13 £344m2013-14 £291m2014/15 £253mSince 1 October 2013, the BSOG which was previously paid to bus operators for running bus services under franchise to Transport for London (TfL) in London has been incorporated into the general grant paid to TfL and the Greater London Authority. The figures given above exclude some £47 million paid to TfL/GLA in this way for 2013/14 and some £93 million paid to them for 2014/15.The figures given for 2013/14 onwards are made up of (i) BSOG paid to bus companies and community transport operators for running services outside London, (ii) BSOG devolved to local transport authorities in the five areas which have been designated as Better Bus Areas, and (iii) BSOG for tendered (non-commercially viable) services outside London for which the funding has been devolved to individual local authorities since 1 January 2014.As BSOG is a demand-led grant, it is too early to give an accurate projection of spend for 2015/16. However, we would expect it to be broadly similar to that for 2014-15.

Severn River Crossing: Tolls

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, at what level tolls at the Severn Bridge will be set from January 2016.

Andrew Jones: An announcement regarding the toll levels for the Severn River Crossings is made by the concessionaire every year, and I understand they will announce in the coming weeks the 2016 toll levels. The Severn Bridges Act 1992 stipulates the level of increases in Severn tolls each year – in line with RPI during the concession period.

Railways: Freight

Kelvin Hopkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what proportion of the railway is able to accommodate the transport of full-sized lorry trailers on trains.

Claire Perry: The only railway infrastructure in Britain that can accommodate a rail freight service carrying lorry trailers is HS1 between the Channel Tunnel and Barking, which can carry the standard international 4 metres semi-trailer. It represents 0.75% per cent of Britain’s rail route mileage.The 80% of the UK domestic semi-trailer fleet with a height of 4.25 metres or greater cannot be accommodated on trains in Britain. However, container goods can be accepted across the freight network, which carries some 1 million containers – 30% of total container freight in the UK - a year.

Motorways: Repairs and Maintenance

Bob Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department has taken to minimise the extent and length of road works on the motorway network at times when work is not taking place.

Andrew Jones: Highways England combine maintenance and improvement schemes to maximise activity within roadworks. However, lane closures are sometimes left in place through the day and then work undertaken overnight. Removing these completely each day would be time consuming and would delay projects and motorists for longer.

Cycling and Walking

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what progress his Department has made on publishing a cycling and walking investment strategy.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I was delighted that the Infrastructure Act included a firm commitment to deliver a Cycling & Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). We will be ready to commence a formal consultation on this in Spring 2016.

Public Transport: Disability

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of his Department's policies on increasing access to public transport for disabled passengers.

Andrew Jones: We have made significant progress on increasing access. By the end of the year, we expect around 75% of rail journeys to start or end at a step-free station. That is an increase from around 50% when the Access for All programme started. That programme will deliver 151 step-free routes at stations this year. On the buses, only 57% met accessibility regulations in 2009-10. That number is now nearly 90% and rising.

Department for Communities and Local Government

Non-domestic Rates: Newcastle Upon Tyne

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how much was raised by business rates in the Newcastle upon Tyne local authority area in the last year for which figures are available.

Mr Marcus Jones: In 2013-14, the total business rates income raised in Newcastle upon Tyne was £128.5 million. Based on their own estimates, the total business rates income in 2015-16 is expected to be £154.1 million

Non-domestic Rates: North East

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the effect of his proposed changes to business rates on (a) the North East, (b) the North East Combined Authority area and (c) Newcastle upon Tyne local authority area.

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities he expects to lose 7.5 per cent of their business rate revenue after the introduction of his business rate reforms.

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate he has made of the cost of administering the proposed safety net mechanism for local authorities which lose more than 7.5 per cent of their business rate revenue in a year; and to what budget this will fall.

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, which local authorities he estimates will have a net financial (a) gain and (b) loss in revenue from the proposed changes to business rate revenue allocation.

Ian Mearns: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential cumulative financial effecr by 2021 on the twelve local authorities in the North East of the Government's proposal to localise business rates.

Mr Marcus Jones: The Government intends to move to 100% business rates retention in England by the end of this Parliament. We have confirmed that as part of the new system there will continue to be redistribution of local tax revenue between authorities and protections in place for authorities that see their business rates income fall significantly. Over the coming months we will be working with local government on the details of the scheme.Ahead of final decisions, it is too early to assess what the impact will be on individual areas or authorities, but before the start of the financial year, local authorities in the North-East estimated that the total business rates income for 2015-16 would be £854.58 million.

Housing

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of properties required to meet housing demand in (a) England, (b) the North East and (c) Easington constituency in each of the next five years.

Brandon Lewis: The Government does not assess demand for housing or set housing targets. The National Planning Policy Framework and planning guidance expects local authorities to objectively identify and then meet the housing needs of their area.

Housing: Dartford

Gareth Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many new homes were built in Dartford constituency in 2014.

Brandon Lewis: Statistics on house building starts and completions in England and in each local authority district, including Dartford, are published in the Department's live tables 253 (annual) and 253a (quarterly), which are available at the following link:http://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-house-buildingThese statistics are not available by parliamentary constituency.The house building statistics exclude other sources of housing supply such as conversions.

Empty Property

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what estimate his Department has made of the number of empty properties in (a) England, (b) the North East and (c) Easington constituency.

Brandon Lewis: Statistics on vacant dwellings in England and in each local authority district are published int the Department’s live table 615 which is at the following linkhttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-dwelling-stock-including-vacantsThe total numbers of empty homes in England has fallen by 160,000 since the end of 2009 - the number of empty homes in England is now at a 10 year low. Figures are not available for constituencies.

Local Government: Elections

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, if he will estimate the potential savings to local authorities of holding local council elections once every four years.

Mr Marcus Jones: On the assumptions that the cost of running local elections is £1.50 per elector and that all councils currently having elections more frequently than every 4 years were to move to whole council elections every fourth year, we estimate the savings across England over a four year period would be in the order of £50 million.

Housing: Fire Prevention

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many home fire safety checks were completed by fire and rescue services in 2013-14.

Mr Mark Francois: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Schools: Fire Prevention

Liz McInnes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, how many visits fire and rescue services made to schools in 2013-14.

Mr Mark Francois: The Department for Communities and Local Government has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Parking

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has carried out of the adequacy of parking capacity across local authorities; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, what support his Department is providing to local authorities to meet localised demand for parking spaces; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Marcus Jones: Local authorities have the power and responsibility to provide adequate parking provision in their area. They are best placed to understand and ensure the parking needs of their local communities are met. It would be inappropriate for Central Government to intervene in this matter. Communities now have the opportunity to challenge local authorities' parking policies if they think provision is inadequate. This is set out at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/right-to-challenge-parking-policies.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Libya: Compensation

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what records his Department holds on representations made by the Government to (a) the US Administration and (b) the Libyan government in 2008 about inclusion of compensation claims by victims of IRA/Libyan sponsored violence in the UK in the scope of the Libyan Claims Settlement Agreement; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: When it became clear in May 2008 that the US and Libya were proceeding on a bilateral agreement to settle outstanding claims, the UK Government made representations to the US and Libyan authorities to include UK victims of Libyan-sponsored IRA terrorism on the list of recipients. Unfortunately this proved not to be possible. The Libyans made clear that they had answered questions about their support for the IRA in 1995 and considered the matter closed.We want to see a just solution for all of the victims of Qadhafi-sponsored IRA terrorism, and we remain determined to make progress. Once stability returns, and our embassy re-opens, we will again encourage the Libyan authorities to engage with UK victims and their legal representatives seeking redress, including those seeking compensation.

Rebecca Prosser

Mrs Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, on what occasions British consular officials in Indonesia have visited Rebecca Prosser since her detention on 28 May 2015; how long each such visit lasted; and when the next such visit will take place.

Mr Hugo Swire: Members of the consular team in Jakarta have visited Rebecca Prosser twice. The first visit took place on 2 June, shortly after her arrest, and lasted 30 minutes. The second, which lasted over two hours, took place on 10 September when she was moved from house arrest into a detention facility. Normal practice is to visit detainees in Indonesia every three months.Consular staff are in regular contact with Ms Prosser’s employer’s representatives, her legal team and her family. Since court proceedings began, we have provided a weekly written update to Ms Prosser, her family and their MPs. Our most recent contact with Ms Prosser’s family was on 21 October.

International Courts: Constitutional and Administrative Law

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will discuss with his (a) EU and (b) African Union counterparts the creation of an International Constitutional Court to be used for settling disputes concerning (i) presidential term limits and (ii) constitutional matters that may give rise to civil or military conflicts.

James Duddridge: We are not aware of any discussions with or between African Union or EU counterparts about an International Constitutional Court. The “Africa Court of Human and People’s Rights (ACHPR)” based in Arusha already has a mandate to make judgements on African Union Member States’ compliance with the African Charter on Human and People's Rights. It is for national constitutional courts first to make judgements on constitutional affairs in their own countries, in line with the principle of subsidiarity, though the ACHPR will also form judgements where requested by African Union Member States, as recently happened in the case of Burundi.

India: Elephants

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will make representations to his Indian counterpart on (a) the treatment of and (b) the use of bullhooks on Asian elephants in the tourism and logging industry.

Mr Hugo Swire: We are aware of reports that some elephants in use in the tourist industry in India have been captured as calves and then beaten and mistreated. This practice is illegal in India. Officials have had discussions on this issue with Save The Asian Elephant (STAE), an organisation that hopes to stop this cruel procedure.The United Kingdom is committed to conserving Asian elephants and recognises the growing threats to their populations, particularly from poaching and cross-border, illegal trade in live animals to feed the demand by the tourist and entertainment industries. The United Kingdom has been working internationally through the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) in discussion with elephant range states, including India, to increase protection for Asian elephants. We secured agreement in 2014 for elephant range states to put in place measures to prevent illegal trade in live elephants.Although it is not for the Government to make British citizens aware of this practice, we will continue to work together with the Indian authorities, as well as STAE and other non-governmental organisations, on protecting elephants.

Rebecca Prosser

Mrs Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, at which court hearings in Indonesia for Rebecca Prosser, Consular officials in his Department attended.

Mr Hugo Swire: It is not our general policy to send consular officials, who are not legally trained, to attend court hearings. Consular officials have not therefore attended the court hearings. Consular staff remain in regular contact with Ms Prosser’s employer’s representatives, her legal team and her family.

Climate Change: International Cooperation

Barry Gardiner: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans he has to remove the climate diplomacy function of his Department in response to the UNFCCC Paris COP 21.

James Duddridge: The Government takes the risk posed by climate change very seriously, and the UK remains a global leader on climate change action. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change Paris COP21 will aim to keep the goal of limiting global temperature rise to below 2 degrees within reach, but is not the end game. Whatever the outcome of COP21, the Government will continue to engage with international partners on climate policy issues, and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office will work closely with Department of Energy and Climate Change, Department for International Development and other relevant departments to this end.Demonstrating the UK’s commitment to climate action, the Prime Minister announced at the UN General Assembly on 27 September that the government will provide a further £5.8 billion from the existing 0.7% official development assistance (ODA) budget to the UK’s International Climate Fund in the next spending round, between April 2016 and March 2021.

Rebecca Prosser

Ms Harriet Harman: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what information his Department holds on court hearings which have taken place in respect of Rebecca Prosser in Indonesia; and which such hearings have been attended by Consular officials.

Mr Hugo Swire: It is not our general policy to send consular officials, who are not legally trained, to attend court hearings. Consular officials have not therefore attended the court hearings. Consular staff remain in regular contact with Ms Prosser’s employer’s representatives, her legal team and her family.

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Chinese government on Gendun Choeki Nyima, the 11th Panchen Lama; and whether his Department has requested documentation and photographs to support the Chinese government's statement that he is leading a normal life.

Mr Hugo Swire: As I stated during a Westminster Hall Debate on Tibet on 18 June, we continue to raise the issue of the Panchen Lama with the Chinese authorities. We have urged them to ensure that the restrictions on his freedom of movement and communication are lifted, so that he may select the career, education or religious life of his choosing, wherever he is. We have also supported calls by the UN special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief and the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child for the relevant authorities to facilitate a meeting between the Panchen Lama and independent international observers.

East Africa: Diplomatic Service

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many people requiring consular assistance in Addis Ababa and Nairobi originated in Somalia in each of the last three years.

James Duddridge: British nationals are not required to state where they come from when they request assistance, and therefore we do not maintain records of this information. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office provides consular assistance as appropriate to the individual circumstances of each case.

Yemen

Stephen Gethins: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he (a) has made and (b) plans to make to the UN Security Council on steps to promote (i) constructive engagement in peace talks by parties involved in the conflict, (ii) improved humanitarian access and (iii) compliance with international humanitarian and human rights law in Yemen.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The UK co-sponsored UN Security Council Resolutions 2201 and 2216 which condemned Houthi actions, recognised President Hadi as the legitimate President of Yemen, and called on all parties to engage in good faith in UN-brokered negotiations. We remain fully supportive of the UN’s efforts to achieve a lasting ceasefire and the resumption of an inclusive political process. We are urging all parties to engage in good faith with the UN process.Improving humanitarian access is a top priority and all parties to the conflict must take all reasonable steps to facilitate safe and sustained access for humanitarian aid. The UK has committed £75 million in humanitarian aid in response to the situation.We are aware of reports of alleged violations of International Humanitarian Law (IHL). We take such allegations very seriously and regularly raise the issue and seek assurance of IHL compliance with the Government of Yemen and the Saudi Arabian-led Coalition. We have also been clear with the Houthis that actions taken must comply with IHL.The UK continues to play a leading role in trying to improve the situation in Yemen. I chaired a meeting at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) last month to encourage all parties to get behind the UN political process to achieve lasting peace and to alleviate the dire humanitarian situation. The Secretary of State for International Development, my right hon. Friend the Member for Putney (Justine Greening) also co-chaired a humanitarian side-event during the UN General Assembly to raise the profile of the humanitarian situation and encourage additional funding from donors.

Tenzin Delek Rinpoche

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions his Department has had with the Chinese government on the death in custody of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche.

Mr Hugo Swire: I raised the case of Tenzin Delek Rinpoche during Westminster Hall Debates on Tibet on both 18 June and in December last year. I urged the Chinese authorities to consider him for release on medical parole. We were saddened by reports that Tenzin died in detention on 12 July.We supported and encouraged the EU statement of 15 July, which said the EU expected the Chinese authorities to investigate and make public the circumstances surrounding Tenzin’s death. We will continue to raise our related concerns at the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue, through the EU, and as part of our wider relationship with China.

China: Capital Punishment

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps UK diplomatic posts in China have taken under his Department's 2010-2015 Strategy for the Abolition of the Death Penalty.

Mr Hugo Swire: We have continued to urge the Chinese authorities to reduce their use of the death penalty, and did so during the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue in April. Through our network of diplomatic posts, the UK is working with Chinese legal experts and the Chinese judiciary to support legislative and judicial reforms to limit the use of the death penalty. We have supported a number of specific projects with the purpose of encouraging debate on the death penalty, providing information about global trends, and proposing alternatives in penal policy.

Tibet: Religious Freedom

Fabian Hamilton: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment his Department has made of the level of freedom of religion or belief in the Tibet autonomous region.

Mr Hugo Swire: We consider freedom of religion or belief to be a fundamental human right and support its protection and promotion around the world. We have concerns about restrictions on freedom of religion or belief and the wider treatment of ethnic minorities in the Tibetan Autonomous Region. I made clear a range of our concerns during a Westminster Hall Debate on Tibet on 18 June. We continue to raise our related concerns in detail with the Chinese authorities, for example during the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue. We have highlighted a range of our concerns in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s Annual Report on Human Rights and Democracy (www.hrdreport.fco.gov.uk). We will continue to raise our concerns as part of our wider relationship with China.

Human Rights

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the contribution of the Permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Affairs Committee on 15 September 2015, Qq 9-11, HC467, whether the promotion of human rights remains a top priority for his Department.

Mr David Lidington: Human rights remain an integral part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's work. They are mainstreamed across our work and they are intrinsically linked with many aspects of our national interest, including the stability and prosperity of our international partners.

Karl Andree

William Wragg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2015 to Question 901670, what recent reports he has received on the imprisonment of Karl Andree in Saudi Arabia; what steps he is taking to secure the return to the UK of Mr Andree; and what recent discussions he has had with his Saudi counterpart on improving extradition arrangements with that country.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: Ministers and senior officials raised Mr Andree’s case with the Saudi Government repeatedly since he completed his sentence in August 2015.I am pleased to be able to say that yesterday morning the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, my righ hon. Friend the Member for Runnymede and Weybridge (Mr Hammond) was informed that the public prosecutor is now in the final stages of completing the necessary processes that will lead to Mr Andree’s release and return to the UK. We expect this to be within the next week.In regard to extradition arrangements, Home Office Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide variety of international partners, as well as organisations and individuals in the public and private sectors, as part of the process of policy development and delivery.

Foreign Relations: Scotland

Peter Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, on how many occasions officials of his Department have contacted representatives of a foreign government to ask for an account of private meetings or discussions held between representatives of that government and Scottish Government Ministers in each of the last five years.

Mr David Lidington: Foreign policy is reserved to the UK Government. The UK Government recognises the interests of the devolved administrations (DAs) in international policy which touches upon devolved areas. Under the framework of the relevant Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and concordats, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) frequently supports overseas visits by DAs ministers and officials. FCO officials generally attend such meetings overseas and expect the DAs to provide details of any international meetings at which FCO officials were not present. The FCO maintains a broad overview of bilateral relations with all countries.

Turkey: Press Freedom

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, pursuant to his oral contribution of 20 October 2015, Official Report, column 813, what discussions he has had with ministers in the Turkish government on ensuring that freedom of the press is upheld in that country as it relates to citizens of any country.

Mr David Lidington: Foreign and Commonwealth Office Ministers and officials regularly encourage Turkey to continue to work towards the full protection of fundamental rights, including the principles of freedom of expression and freedom of the press. I discussed these issues, in the context of Turkey’s accession to the EU, when I last met my Turkish counterpart in August this year.

Wales Office

Foreign Relations: Wales

Peter Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, on how many occasions officials of his Department have contacted representatives of a foreign government to ask for an account of private meetings or discussions held between representatives of that government and Welsh Government Ministers in each of the last five years.

Stephen Crabb: On no occasion have Wales Office officials contacted representatives of a foreign government to ask for an account of private meetings or discussions held between representatives of that government and Welsh Government Ministers.

Attorney General

Organised Crime: Drugs

Ann Coffey: To ask the Attorney General, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 to Question 11678, how many prosecutions for trafficking offences linked to County Lines investigations there have been in cases where a child under the age of 18 was trafficked to another area to distribute drugs; and what the outcomes were of each such prosecution.

Robert Buckland: The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) maintains no central record of prosecutions for trafficking offences linked to County Lines investigations. This information could only be obtained by examining CPS case files, which would incur disproportionate cost.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills

Minimum Wage

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what plans he has to increase enforcement rates for the national minimum wage.

Nick Boles: The Government is committed to cracking down on employers who break the National Minimum Wage (NMW) law. In 2014/15, HMRC conducted 2,204 investigations into potential NMW non-compliance, totalling £3,291,529 of arrears for 26,318 workers.This is up from 1,455 investigations conducted in 2013/14, totalling £4,645,547of arrears for 22,610 workers.Building on our existing reforms, the Prime Minister announced on 1 September 2015 further measures to strengthen the enforcement of the NMW. These include:increasing penalties from 100% to 200% of the arrears employers owed.the setting up of a dedicated team in Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) focused on tackling the most serious cases of wilful non-compliance.increasing the enforcement budget in preparation for the National Minimum and Living Wage from April 2016.the creation of a statutory Director of Labour Market Enforcement and Exploitation.

Skilled Workers: Cumbria

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the skills gap in Cumbria.

Nick Boles: It is not for central government to assess local skills needs. Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) are working in collaboration with local authorities, colleges and providers in the area to jointly agree key local skill needs and develop a local skills offer that is responsive to local labour market conditions and contributes to improving our productivity.Cumbria LEP and the Cumbria Employment and Skills Commission are currently refreshing the area skills strategy and this will be finalised in December 2015. It will include a review of the skills needs of the four key sectors denoted in the Cumbria Strategic Economic Plan: Nuclear and Energy; Advanced Manufacturing; Rural and Visitor Economy; and, Infrastructure Improvements. The Skills Commission has noted that the future skills needs of the nuclear sector and BAE Systems Submarine will create significant pressure for skilled labour, particularly in advanced manufacturing and engineering. This will create displacement challenges in other manufacturing businesses in the area.In September the government announced a programme of area reviews, which will be locally led and will involve key stakeholders. They will be based on the best available evidence of skills requirements and establish a local post-16 education and training offer which is high quality and responsive to employer need. The reviews will support local involvement in the ongoing commissioning of provision, putting responsibility in the hands of people who are best placed to tailor provision to local economic needs. Cumbria will be included in the area review process, due to be completed by March 2017 and an announcement on the date for the review will be announced in due course.

Apprentices

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many people completed more than one apprenticeship at the same qualification level between May 2010 and May 2015.

Nick Boles: Individuals who have successfully completed an Apprenticeship are not normally allowed to repeat an Apprenticeship at the same Level. A recent piece of research focusing on value added post learning shows that of the 280,000 people with a Level 2 Apprenticeship as their highest qualification held between 2004/2005 to 2010/2011, 8,000 (3 per cent) had previously achieved a Level 2 Apprenticeship in the same period. And of the 233,000 people with a Level 3 Apprenticeship as their highest qualification held between 2004/2005 to 2010/2011, 5,000 (2 per cent) had previously achieved a Level 3 Apprenticeship in the same period.Funding for Apprenticeships is managed by the Skills Funding Agency through funding rules. These rules state that Apprentices who have successfully completed an Apprenticeship at any level are not expected to start a second Apprenticeship at the same or lower level. Apprentices will be expected to progress to a higher level.In general, to receive funding for an Apprenticeship, the training provider and SFA must be satisfied that, for all Apprentices, this is the most appropriate learning programme and that they are carrying out a new job role or an existing job role where the individual needs significant new knowledge and skills. If an individual changes jobs, remaining in the same sector or changing sector, and fulfils these criteria, funding is available for an Apprenticeship.In certain circumstances, Apprentices may need to be multi-skilled. In this case, the SFA will fund an Apprenticeship at the same or lower level if the Apprenticeship is supporting the Apprentice in an extended job role.However, individuals who have a prior qualification at Level 4 or above are only eligible for funding for a Higher Apprenticeship at Level 5 or above. They are not eligible for funding for an Intermediate Level (Level 2), Advanced Level (Level 3) or Level 4 Higher Apprenticeship, even if they change their job role or the sector they work in.

Funerals: Fees and Charges

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the level of charges levied by funeral directors for their goods and services.

Nick Boles: The Department has not made an assessment regarding this issue.If there is evidence of anti-competitive behaviour by funeral directors, this should be referred to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), the UK’s independent competition authority, for consideration.

Students: North East

Bridget Phillipson: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of university entry rates by (a) gender and (b) social background for students from (i) the North East, (ii) Houghton and Sunderland South constituency and (iii) Sunderland local authority area in 2014-15.

Joseph Johnson: The table shows information held by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills on university entry rates, using Free School Meals as an indicator of socio-economic background. Information is not available for 2014-15 or at parliamentary constituency level from this source.Estimated percentage of pupils from state-funded schools aged 15 in 2008/09 by Free School Meal status and gender who entered Higher Education by age 19 in 2012/13 [1]FemaleMaleFSMNon-FSMFSMNon-FSMNorth East16%42%14%34%Sunderland15%38%13%32%Source: Matched data from the DfE National Pupil Database, HESA Student Record and SFA ILR[1] Covers those who entered Higher Education in Higher Education Institutions in the UK and Further Education Colleges in England. Sunderland refers to the Sunderland local authority area.The UCAS End of Cycle report has information on 18 year old entry rates by parliamentary constituency and gender, but not by social background below national level.https://www.ucas.com/corporate/data-and-analysis/ucas-undergraduate-releases/ucas-undergraduate-analysis-reports/ucasHEFCE has published information at constituency level, though not broken down by gender and social background, for 2011/12, available at the following link.http://www.hefce.ac.uk/analysis/yp/trendsyp/pment/

Living Wage

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the effect of the introduction of the National Living Wage on rates of pay above the statutory minimum; and if he will make a statement.

Nick Boles: The Government will publish an Impact Assessment for the introduction of the National Living Wage alongside the implementation regulations. The Office of Budget Responsibility estimates that 3.25 million people above the new statutory minimum will benefit from the National Living Wage.

Iron and Steel: Energy

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the level of energy prices on the steel industry; and if he will make a statement.

Anna Soubry: The Government recognises that energy costs are among the factors that have an impact on the competitiveness of the steel industry and for that reason has provided over £50 million compensation to steel makers for energy costs.We are also in advanced discussions with the European Commission to approve millions of pounds of further compensation for energy intensive industries, including steel makers. Many years of underinvestment in the UK’s energy infrastructure has meant wholesale prices of energy are higher in the UK than in some other EU countries. The Government is committed to addressing this long term issue through, for example, new nuclear plants and our support for shale gas extraction.

Apprentices

Mr Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many apprenticeships have been created under the Trailblazer scheme in the last nine months.

Nick Boles: The number of Apprenticeship Starts on Standards (known previously as Trailblazers) is published as part of the Department’s Statistical First Release (first link). Table 20.1 (second link) shows the provisional number of starts on Standards in the 2014/15 academic year, by quarter.https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-heldhttps://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/468260/learner-participation-outcomes-and-level-of-highest-qualification-data-tables-october15-ofqual-update.xlsProvisional data for August to October 2015 will be published in January 2016.

Students: Finance

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the comparative merits of universities using (a) postcodes and (b) household incomes to determine whether a student lives in a low-participation neighbourhood for the purposes of eligibility for bursaries; and if he will make a statement.

Joseph Johnson: Universities wishing to charge fees above the basic fee level must agree an access agreement with the independent Director of Fair Access, setting out the support they will give to students from disadvantaged backgrounds. The Director of Fair Access has said that universities should use any evidence they have about the impact of financial support on widening participation when making decisions on their support packages. They should also include details of the evidence used in their access agreements.It is for universities themselves to decide the criteria for awarding bursaries and, in respect of students from disadvantaged backgrounds, to set these out in their access agreement. Each university will decide its criteria taking into account the make-up of its own student body and its individual mission.

Sunday Trading

Mr David Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 from the Prime Minister, Official Report, column 947, when the results of the Government's consultation on Sunday trading will be published.

Anna Soubry: We will publish the results of the consultation on Sunday trading shortly.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Electronic Government

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of efficiency savings arising from his Department's digital strategies in (a) 2013-14 and (b) 2014-15.

Joseph Johnson: The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) aims to build digital services that are simpler, clearer and faster to use. In 2013-14 and 2014-15 BIS took the lead in developing five exemplar “digital by default”projects. These focused on transforming key areas in which BIS engages with the public: student finance, Land Registry data, renewing patents, redundancy payments and apprenticeships. By the end of 2014-15 all five BIS digital exemplars were either live or in trial(“beta”) use.Each of these is starting to bring significant benefits. For example, each year there are around 400,000 transactions for renewals of patents. The new digital patent renewal service allows patent owners and agents to complete the renewal process online in just a few minutes whereas the older, paper based service took up to 6 days to process.

Apprentices: Taxation

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate he has made of the proportion of the funds generated through the proposed apprenticeship levy which will be required for its administration costs.

Nick Boles: The Government is committed to fair and simple levy arrangements. We are working closely with Her Majesty’s Treasury and Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs on the design and implementation of the levy. Further detail will be set out alongside the Spending Review later in the autumn.

Further Education

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many officials in his Department are working on the review of post-16 education and training institutions.

Peter Kyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will publish the timetable setting out when each area will have its post-16 education and training reviewed.

Nick Boles: The Department for Education (DfE) and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), along with respective funding agencies, have re-prioritised staffing resources to support the review of post-16 education and training.There are seven reviews in the first wave of area reviews which have either launched since September or will launch in the next few weeks. Each review will take 3-4 months to complete and will be supported by resource from the DfE, BIS, Education Funding Agency and Skills Funding Agency.The area reviews of post 16 education and training are being undertaken in waves and can be triggered by either the local area requesting a review or the FE Commissioner or Sixth Form College Commissioner identifying the need for a review because one or more colleges in an area are at risk of failing. The first wave is underway now and details of the following reviews have been announced and can be found on the gov.uk website :Birmingham and SolihullGreater ManchesterSheffield City RegionTees ValleySussex CoastSolentWest YorkshireThe second wave will start in January 2016 and we aim to announce details in November 2015. We are currently looking at the geographies and phasing for other areas and will aim to issue further information on this before the end of the year but in doing this we recognise that the position should remain fluid to take account of the views of local partners and also cases of failure.We expect all reviews to be completed by March 2017.

Department for Business, Innovation and Skills: Digital Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what (a) funding his Department is undertaking and (b) projects his Department has planned as part of the Government's Digital Inclusion Strategy.

Nick Boles: a) The Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) currently funds a programme through the Tinder Foundation with the aim of equipping up to 1m adults with the basic digital skills, motivation and confidence to go online, be digitally capable and to be safe online. The contract was awarded by open competitive tender in October 2014 and has a maximum value of £15m. This addresses Action 2 of the Digital Inclusion Strategy 2014 (to establish a quality cross-government digital capability programme).In addition the adult skills budget managed by the Skills Funding Agency continues to support learners to increase skills, competence and knowledge including basic digital skills and capabilities as called for under Action 1 of the Strategy.b) There are no other projects currently planned.

Post Codes: Databases

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the potential economic value of the UK having an address file that was published as open data.

Joseph Johnson: Following a request from the Open Data User Group (ODUG) to the Data Strategy Board in 2013, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills funded an independent advisory report into the feasibility and options for the creation of an open address data set. The report was published in February 2014 and is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/274979/bis-14-513-open-national-address-gazetteer.pdfThe estimated cost of an open data product – £40m per annum to Government – was considered unaffordable by the Public Sector Transparency Board (which subsumed the DSB).However following extensive consultation and engagement with the market since the commissioning of the report in 2013 Royal Mail has simplified it’s Postcode Address File (PAF) licence. They have also introduced new measures to provide free access to PAF for micro businesses and small independent charities.In addition, from 1 April 2014, eligible public sector organisations in England and Wales, and Scotland, have been able to take advantage of the new Public Sector Licence, which reduces the overall cost for those organisations and simplifies access to address data.

Vocational Education

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, whether he plans to publish (a) a formal response to and (b) the submissions received by his Department concerning the Dual Mandate consultation issued on 24 March 2015.

Nick Boles: The consultation document A dual mandate for adult vocational education was published in March 2015 by the previous government.A formal response will be published in due course. The Department may, in accordance with the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information, make available, on public request, individual responses.

Freight: France

Robert Flello: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what estimate his Department has made of the cost of the disruption at Calais to the economy in the last three months.

Anna Soubry: Understanding the full cost to the economy would require a detailed analysis of business supply chains. This information can only be provided at disproportionate cost.

Motor Vehicles: Safety

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, pursuant to the Answer of 20 October 2015 to Question 12065, which EU and US regulators and which representatives from the UK are assessing the Comparing Motor-Vehicle Crash Risk of EU and US Vehicles report; and whether that assessment will take account of the report's finding that there is 33 per cent greater risk in front-end collisions of US vehicles compared to EU vehicles.

Anna Soubry: The report is being assessed by the European Commission’s Directorate General for GROWTH, and the US regulator National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).The report will help inform negotiations, but is the first side-by-side comparison of predicted risk for EU-regulated and US-regulated vehicles. It recommends further work to replicate results, identify patterns, and establish links between results, design and regulatory differences.The European Commission has commissioned its own research into vehicle safety and has published the findings so far on its website. Negotiators will look to use all of the evidence available to ensure we capture the trade benefits without compromising EU safety standards.

Iron and Steel: Redcar

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what discussions Ministers and officials from his Department had with the Insolvency Service on Redcar steelworks prior to the announcement of SSI entering administration.

Anna Soubry: I can confirm that Government agencies, including the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, and the Insolvency Service discussed the situation at Redcar prior to SSI’s entry into liquidation, given the parlous state of SSI’s finances and its huge losses.

Iron and Steel: Redundancy

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if (a) statutory redundancy payments and (b) final salaries will be paid from the Government's support funding package for those affected by recent redundancies in the steel industry.

Anna Soubry: I can confirm that the support package covers both of these aspects. The money allocated towards redundancies factored in payments for owed salaries and does not affect the money for training and regeneration of the local economy. I also note that without Government action, SSI workers would not have been paid their salaries in September.

Technology: Apprentices

Adam Afriyie: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how many apprentices there were in the technology sector in (a) the UK, (b) the South East and (c) Windsor constituency in the most recent year for which data is available.

Nick Boles: Table 1 shows Apprenticeship Programme Starts in the Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies and Information and Communication Technologies Sector Subject Areas in 2013/14 and provisional data for 2014/15 in England, the South West and Windsor constituency.Table 1: Apprenticeship Programme Starts by Sector Subject Area and Geography, 2013/14 and 2014/15 (provisional)Sector Subject AreaGeography2013/142014/15 (provisional data)Engineering and Manufacturing TechnologiesTotal (England)64,83072,940South East10,73010,250Windsor constituency6060Information and Communication TechnologyTotal (England)13,06015,440South East2,5302,550Windsor constituency3030Notes:1) The data source is the Individualised Learner Record.2) Geography is based on the home postcode of the learner.3) Values are rounded to the nearest 10.This information is published in a supplementary table (first link) to a Statistical First Release (SFR) at the FE Data Library (second link):https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/467752/apprenticeships-starts-by-geography-and-sector-subject-area.xlshttps://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fe-data-library-apprenticeships

Department for International Development

Syria: Christianity

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to assist Christian refugees in Syria who are being persecuted.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The Government have been clear in condemning the horrific attacks on religious communities by violent extremists including ISIL. All UK funded assistance is distributed on the basis of need to ensure civilians are not discriminated against on the grounds of race, religion, or ethnicity. We prioritise reaching the most vulnerable people across Syria, including Christians and those who have suffered from such violence. DFID continues to work with the UN and the international community to ensure all minorities’ rights are protected and our aid reaches those in greatest need.

Pitcairn Islands: Renewable Energy

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what progress her Department has made on establishing a renewable power facility in Pitcairn Islands.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Energy is provided on Pitcairn through diesel powered generators. There are currently no plans to establish a renewable power facility in the near future.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what estimate her Department has made of the number of people under the age of 18 displaced by the conflict in Yemen.

Mr Desmond Swayne: The UN reports that the number of people displaced internally in Yemen is 2.3 million; of those, the UN estimates that 21% are boys under the age of 18, and 22% are girls under the age of 18. The UN does not have age-disaggregated data for refugees who have fled from Yemen.The UK is one of the largest donors to the humanitarian crisis in Yemen, and has announced a £75 million commitment. UK aid is providing vital medical supplies, water, food and emergency shelter, including for internally displaced people and children.

Developing Countries: Climate Change

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to use the Paris Climate Summit in December 2015 to promote support for developing countries to help tackle climate change.

Grant Shapps: DFID is working closely with DECC, the lead department for the climate negotiations, on preparations for the Paris Climate Summit to ensure that poverty reduction and development priorities are reflected to help the poorest and most vulnerable, including girls and women, respond to a changing climate.Last month the Prime Minister announced that the UK would provide £5.8bn in climate finance over the next 5 years.

Philippines: Storms

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assistance the Government plans to provide to the Philippines to help that country deal with the aftermath of tropical storm Koppu.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Apart from a specific request to the UN humanitarian country team, the Government of the Philippines has not asked for international assistance following Typhoon Koppu. The UK continues to provide support to the Philippines for longer-term reconstruction and disaster resilience following Typhoon Yolanda in November 2013. This project contributed to the preparedness for Typhoon Koppu and there are no additional plans for UK assistance at this time.

Yemen

Imran Hussain: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to support development programmes in Yemen.

Mr Desmond Swayne: Given the current humanitarian crisis in the country, the principal focus of the UK’s support to Yemen is on meeting immediate humanitarian needs and delivering basic services. The UK is one of the largest donors to the humanitarian crisis and has announced £75 million commitment so far. UK aid is providing vital medical supplies, water, food and emergency shelter, as well as supporting the UN work to co-ordinate the international humanitarian response. Our support is delivered through UN agencies and international NGOs.

Department for Education

GCSE

Margaret Ferrier: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many GCSE exam papers have been sent to other countries to be marked this year.

Nick Gibb: This is a matter for Ofqual, the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation. I have therefore asked its Chief Regulator, Glenys Stacey, to write directly to the Honourable Member. A copy of her reply will be placed in the House of Commons Library.

Primary Education: Admissions

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress her Department has made on preparing to amend the Admissions Code to give parents of summer-born children a right to defer their start to school; and when a consultation on those amendments will take place.

Nick Gibb: On 8 September, I announced the government’s intention to amend the School Admissions Code, subject to parliamentary approval, so that children born in summer can be admitted to the reception class at the age of five where this is the wish of their parents. This intention is set out in an open letter to parents, schools and local authorities which is available online at: www.gov.uk/government/publications/summer-born-children-nick-gibbs-letter-about-school-admissionsWork is now underway to assess what other changes it might be appropriate to make to the Admissions Code. We hope to have a draft Code ready for consultation in the New Year.

Special Educational Needs: Hearing Impairment

Joan Ryan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment she has made of the implications for her policies of the findings and recommendations of the National Deaf Children's Society report, One year on: impact of changes to the special educational needs system on deaf children, published on 1 September 2015; and if she will make a statement.

Edward Timpson: The Children and Families Act 2014 introduced significant reforms to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) system. The new statutory framework will ensure that support is focused on needs and aspirations, enabling all pupils to achieve better outcomes in education and adult life.Since the Act came into force, in September 2014, there have been a number of significant changes to the SEND system, including the publication of ‘local offers’ of SEN services by local authorities; the introduction of streamlined education, health and care assessments; and new statutory protections for young people aged 16-25 in further education.Implementing these reforms requires substantial cultural and procedural change at local level. We are closely monitoring implementation and we are continuing to provide support.Local authorities in England each received a share of a £70 million reform grant in 2014-15; and of a further £45.2 million in 2014-15 and £31.7 million in 2015-16 to meet the additional costs of implementing the new SEN duties. Peer support is available to local authorities and their partners through a network of regional lead authorities. And we have funded a range of grants and contracts to provide advice and support to local authorities and their partners across education, health and social care. This includes support to parents and young people, through parent carer forums and the Independent Support programme (£15m per year in 2014-15 and 2015-16).

Primary Education: Admissions

Stephen Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether her Department has assessed the implications of using a premature child's due date, rather than his or her birth date, for the purpose of determining when that child should start school.

Nick Gibb: We have announced the intention to amend the School Admissions Code so that, subject to parliamentary approval, children born in summer can be admitted to the reception class at the age of five, where this is the wish of their parents. Work is currently underway to assess what other changes it might be appropriate to make to the Code. As part of this process, we will consider whether it would be appropriate to use a prematurely-born child’s expected birth date in the admissions process.

Supply Teachers

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will commission an update to the research study of Recruitment, Deployment and Management of Supply Teachers in England commissioned by her Department in 2006; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The Department for Education has no plans to commission an update to this research.

Ofsted

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will bring forward legislative proposals to ensure that reviews into Ofsted's conduct are conducted by an independent body.

Nick Gibb: Ofsted has well-established policies and procedures to investigate thoroughly and objectively any concerns received about its work. From August 2015, when a complaint about an Ofsted inspection is escalated to internal review, the handling of the case will also be assessed by a new scrutiny committee. For added independence, the scrutiny committee will include an external panel member who is a senior education practitioner or other sector leader not involved in carrying out inspections for Ofsted.If a complainant remains dissatisfied after this process, they can request an external review of the handling of their concerns by the Independent Complaints Adjudication Service for Ofsted.

Supply Teachers

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 23 June 2015 to Question 2405, what the total cost to state-funded schools of hiring agency teachers was in (a) Brighton Pavilion constituency, (b) Brighton and Hove local authority area and (c) England in each year since 2010.

Nick Gibb: Information for the expenditure on agency supply teaching staff is available online in the following locations.Spend data on agency supply staff by maintained schools at a national level is available in the publication ‘Expenditure by Local Authorities and Schools on Education, Children and Young People’s Services: 2013-14’ (Table 3), at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-education-and-childrens-services-spending-2013-to-2014 Spend data on agency supply staff by academies at a national level is available in ‘Income and expenditure in Academies in England: 2012 to 2013 (Experimental Statistics)’ (Raw data SATS table) at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-and-expenditure-in-academies-in-england-2013-to-2014Detailed Information on the income and expenditure of local authorities and schools (including academies) can be found in the Department’s local authority and school finance data publications at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-local-authority-school-finance-data

Supply Teachers

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 3 June 2015 to Question 36, if she will make it her policy to separately identify agency teachers in the annual School Workforce Census; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The government believes that it is for schools to decide when it is appropriate to employ agency teachers; this allows schools to manage their resources and staffing structures in a way that meets local needs and priorities without central prescription from government. The annual School Workforce Census already captures sufficient information regarding the overall teacher employment position in each school.

Supply Teachers

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make a comparative assessment of the (a) cost to the public purse and (b) terms and conditions for supply teachers of the (i) local authority pool model, (ii) private agency model of supplying cover staff for state-funded schools and (iii) the supply register model operated in Northern Ireland; and if she will make a statement.

Nick Gibb: The overall expenditure for supply staff in local authority maintained schools for 2013-14 can be found in table 3 at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/schools-education-and-childrens-services-spending-2013-to-2014. Data for academies and free schools can be found online at: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/income-and-expenditure-in-academies-in-england-2013-to-2014The Department for Education has no data that would enable it to make any comparison between the costs of a local authority pool model, the costs incurred through a private agency model or the comparative costs of the supply model register operated in Northern Ireland.In relation to terms of conditions of supply staff, schools and local authoritiesare responsible for the recruitment of their supply teachers, which includes deciding whether to use private agencies to recruit and manage them. If a supply teacher is employed by a private agency, this is a private commercial arrangement between the school and the agency. The agency can also decide the rate of pay and conditions of employment.The Department for Education does not have any direct control over the way in which individual agencies operate and how they decide the pay and conditions of supply teachers. However, if agencies do not appear to be complying with legislation they can be investigated by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate (EASI). The EASI is part of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and has powers to investigate agencies for possible breaches of the law and to prosecute them where there is sufficient evidence. The EASI works with agencies, employers and workers to make sure that employment rights are complied with, particularly for vulnerable workers.Conditions for agency workers have been improved through the Agency Workers Regulations (AWR), so supply teachers are entitled to the same pay and employment conditions that they would be entitled to receive if they were employed directly by a maintained school or academy. This is subject to a qualifying period of 12 continuous weeks working in the same role with the same school or local authority.

Schools: Hendon

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that there are adequate numbers of school places in Hendon constituency.

Edward Timpson: Local authorities are responsible for planning and securing sufficient school places in their area; supporting them in this is one of this government’s top priorities. We allocate basic need funding to local authorities to help create new school places where they are needed. The London Borough of Barnet has been allocated £27.9 million for the period 2015-18. Barnet also received £68.7 million of basic need funding between 2011 and 15, which is an increase of 49.5 million compared to the amount spent by the previous government in the period 2007-11.The money allocated to Barnet since 2011 has helped to create 7,136 new school places between 2010 and 2014. In addition, Watling Park School, a primary free school that opened in September 2015, is due to provide 420 additional primary places once at full capacity.Information on basic need allocations can be found online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/basic-need-allocations-2015-to-2018

Schools: Copeland

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how much (a) revenue and (b) capital funding was provided to each pupil in state (i) primary and (ii) secondary schools in Copeland constituency (A) in cash terms and (B) at 2015 prices in each financial year since 2005-06.

Mr Sam Gyimah: Funding from the department is primarily allocated at a local authority level so figures for Cumbria local authority are given below.Average per pupil revenue funding figures for Cumbria are given below. With the introduction of the dedicated schools grant (DSG) in 2006-07, the changes to the funding mechanism meant figures were no longer available to be shown split by phase of education.Figures for financial years 2005 to 2013 are shown below. These are in cash terms:Average revenue per pupil funding (cash)2005-06 (baseline)2006-072007-082008-092009-102010-112011-122012-13Cumbria LA 3,8004,0204,2804,4404,6404,8604,8304,830These are in real terms using September 2015 GDP deflators in 2014-15 prices:Average revenue per pupil funding (real)2005-06 (baseline)2006-072007-082008-092009-102010-112011-122012-13Cumbria LA 4,6704,7904,9605,0205,1205,2105,0905,000Per pupil figures are using DSG allocations plus other schools related grants, e.g. school standards grant, school standards grant (personalisation), standards fund, and pupils aged 3-15 rounded to the nearest £10. Most of the additional grants were mainstreamed into DSG in 2011-12.The changes to DSG funding in financial year 2013 to 2014 with funding allocated through three blocks, namely schools, early years and high needs, means there is no longer a comparable overall figure with previous years. The table below shows the DSG schools block unit funding figures in cash and real terms for Cumbria LA.DSG schools block per pupil funding2013-20142014-2015 2015-2016Cumbria LA (cash)4,4494,4494,569Cumbria LA (real)*4,5134,4494,524*Real terms figures shown in 2014-15 prices using GDP deflators at 30.09.15Since 2011-12, schools have received the pupil premium which targets funding at pupils from the most deprived backgrounds to help them achieve their full potential. In 2011-12, the premium was allocated for each pupil known to be eligible for free school meals, looked after children and children of parents in the armed services. In 2012-13 coverage was expanded to include pupils known to have been eligible for free school meals at any point in the last six years. The amounts per pupil amounts for each type of pupil are shown in following table in cash terms:Pupil Premium per pupil (£)2011-20122012-20132013-20142014-20152015-2016Free School Meal Pupil Primary£488£623£953£1323£1320Free School Meal Pupil Secondary£488£623£900£935£935Service Children£200£250£300£300£300Looked After Children£488£623£900£1900*£1900**Also includes children adopted from careTotal pupil premium allocations for Cumbria local authority and schools in the Copeland constituency for each year are shown in the following table in cash terms:Pupil Premium Allocations (£ millions)2011-20122012-20132013-20142014-20152015-16 (prov.)Cumbria LA4.0807.88512.15916.09516.077Copeland constituency0.6751.2881.9672.5382.557These figures in real terms:Pupil Premium Allocations (£ millions)2011-20122012-20132013-20142014-20152015-16 (prov.)Cumbria LA4.3038.16612.33316.09515.918Copeland constituency0.7121.3341.9952.5382.532Price Base: Real terms at 2014-15 prices, based on GDP deflators as at 30.09.2015Figures for Copeland exclude the looked after children element as this is not available at a parliamentary constituency level.The table below shows capital funding to Cumbria for the financial years that are available. The data is in cash terms as allocations are phased across more than one year making real terms calculations meaningless. Complete information on the split of capital between phases of education is not held centrally.Cumbria£mCapital allocations2005-0628.32006-0725.02007-0826.62008-0931.22009-1083.32010-1177.02011-1245.62012-1334.72013-1424.42014-1524.22015-16 (prov.)5.4Notes:1. Capital allocations includes capital grant and supported borrowing allocations.2. Figures are rounded to the nearest £100,000.3. Funding in 2015-16 is still subject to project progress and is therefore subject to change. The funding figures provided for 2015/16 only include formulaic programmes and payments to date. Further funding is yet to be released for capital programmes dependent upon project progress and this has not been reflected in the figures.

Teachers: Training

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to encourage more people to train as teachers.

Nick Gibb: We believe that all pupils,regardless of birth or background, should have access to high-quality teachers. That is why we are committed to attracting top graduates and career-changers into teaching, and supporting schools to recruit and retain good teachers. Since 2010, we have introduced a series of initiatives to increase recruitment and raise standards of teachers and teaching. We have increased scholarships and training bursaries in priority subjects, which are now worth up to £30,000; we have expanded Teach First and given graduates the chance to earn a salary while they train; our pay reforms have given schools greater flexibility to decide how much they pay teachers and how quickly pay progresses, so there is now more opportunity for good teachers to progress more rapidly.Whilst ensuring that we recruit sufficient numbers of new trainee teachers, we are also committed to supporting schools to retain good teachers. That is why we have made significant policy interventions in areas such as improving pupil behaviour and tackling unnecessary workload for teachers.

Teachers

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many full-time equivalent classroom teachers have been employed in schools in (a) Copeland constituency, (b) Cumbria and (c) England in each of the last five years.

Nick Gibb: The following table provides the number of full-time equivalent classroom teachers in service in state funded schools in Copeland constituency, Cumbria local authority area, and England for November 2010 to November 2014.Copeland ConstituencyCumbriaEnglandNovember 20105203,258375,259November 20114813,166371,674November 20124623,128379,342November 20134923,218385,459November 20144963,351388,655Source: School Workforce Census

Grammar Schools: Kent

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on how (a) playing fields and (b) other facilities and resources available at the recently approved grammar school site in Kent and the existing grammar school that it will be annexed to will be shared.

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on (a) how many staff will be employed on contracts to work at both the recently approved grammar school site in Kent and the existing grammar school that it will be annexed to and (b) how frequently staff will be expected to work on both these sites.

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what governance, leadership and management arrangements will be put in place to oversee the recently approved grammar school site in Kent.

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on how whole-school activities will be managed by the recently approved grammar school site in Kent and the existing grammar school that it will be annexed to.

Edward Timpson: The expansion proposal from the Weald of Kent confirms that the school intends to provide students with a range of opportunities across the curriculum, utilising facilities on both sites. Extra-curricular activities and assemblies will also be shared across both locations.The proposal confirms that the expanded school will have the same leadership, governance, and management arrangements as the existing academy. A single governing body, one headteacher, and one senior leadership team (SLT) with whole school responsibilities will ensure that the current ethos, standards, and quality of learning would be secured in the expanded school. In addition to the headteacher and SLT, heads of department will work across both sites. All new staff contracts will include a requirement that staff may be deployed across the school estate, and all staff will attend training sessions at both sites.The frequency of movement will be in line with delivery of the curriculum.

Schools: Defibrillators

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many defibrillators have been purchased by new schools nationally in accordance with guidance issued in 2014 by her Department; and what assessment she has made of the effect of this guidance.

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools in England have (a) staff trained in CPR or (b) a defibrillator on site; and what plans her Department has to ensure that all schools have (i) such staff and (ii) on-site defibrillators.

Edward Timpson: The Department does not hold information on the number of schools which have staff trained in CPR. All schools should have at least one first-aider, and the number of first-aid personnel will be based on local circumstances, considered as part of a first aid needs assessment in the school. Recognised certificated courses ‘First Aid at Work’ or ‘Emergency First Aid at Work’ train staff in the administration of CPR.The guidance published by the Department in November 2014 promoted a scheme to enable schools to purchase defibrillators at reduced cost. As of 23 October 2015, 735 defibrillators had been purchased by schools through this scheme. The Department does not hold information on the total number of schools with a defibrillator.

Ministry of Justice

Prisoner Escapes

Philip Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many absconds from prison occurred in each month of the most recent year for which information is available.

Andrew Selous: The number of absconds has reduced by 75% over the last 10 years. There were 181 absconds in 2014/15, one of the lowest annual totals on record. The annual number of absconds from prison is published at https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/prison-and-probation-performance-statistics-2014-to-2015Open prisons provide an effective means of ensuring prisoners are tested in the community before they are released and to demonstrate a reduction in risk in preparation for release. To release prisoners directly from a closed prison without the resettlement benefits of the open estate would undoubtedly lead to higher levels of post-release re-offending.The table below provides a monthly breakdown of absconds that occurred during 2014/15, the most recent period that statistics are available.Table 1: Absconds from prisons, England and Wales, 2014/15 by monthMonthNumber of abscondsApr-1426May-1417Jun-1424Jul-1422Aug-1413Sep-1410Oct-1421Nov-1413Dec-148Jan-157Feb-1512Mar-158Total181Notes:Figures do not include absconds from NOMS-run immigration removal centres.

Courts: Carmarthen

Jonathan Edwards: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the annual running costs were of (a) Carmarthen Law Courts (The Guildhall) and (b) Carmarthen Civil, Family, Tribunal and Probate Hearing Centre in each financial year from 2008-09 to date.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Annual running costs for Carmarthen Law Courts (The Guildhall) and Carmarthen Civil, Family, Tribunal and Probate Hearing Centre are provided below. The figures provided do not include staff or judicial costs as it is not possible to attribute all of these costs to a particular site.Financial YearCarmarthen Civil, Family, Tribunal and Probate Hearing CentreCarmarthen Law Courts (The Guildhall)2014-15£17,935.21£160,408.512013-14Not available£133,576.472012-13Not available£238,197.71The Ministry of Justice does not hold comparable annual running costs data for the years 2008/9 to 2011/12.For Carmarthen Civil, Family, Tribunal and Probate Hearing Centre prior to 2014-15 running costs were not allocated to this building and were distributed across a number of sites. It is therefore not possible to provide consistent running cost data for previous years.

Magistrates' Courts: Lincolnshire

Stephen Phillips: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the estimated annual operating costs of (a) Lincoln Magistrates' Court, (b) Skegness Magistrates' Court and (c) Boston Magistrates' Court are when calculated using the same methodology as for his Department's consultation on the court and tribunal estate.

Mr Shailesh Vara: The annual operating costs were approximately:NameOperating Costs 2014/15BOSTON MAGISTRATES' AND COUNTY COURT£195,000LINCOLN MAGISTRATES' COURT£300,000SKEGNESS MAGISTRATES' COURT£198,000The consultation closed on 8 October and no final decisions will be made until all consultation responses have been carefully considered.

Prison Sentences

Andy Slaughter: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, for which offences prisoners serving imprisonment for public protection sentences were convicted on the most recent date for which figures are available.

Andrew Selous: The indeterminate sentence of Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP) was abolished in late 2012, but not retrospectively. It is for the independent Parole Board to determine whether a prisoner serving an IPP should be released once he has completed the minimum custodial period set by the Court for the purposes of retribution and deterrence – commonly known as the “tariff”. Under the statutory release test, the Parole Board may direct the release of an IPP prisoner only if it is satisfied that it is no longer necessary on the grounds of public protection for the prisoner to be detained in custody. It is right that IPP prisoners should remain in custody until it is safe for them to be released.The table shows the number of IPP prisoners, by offence group, at 30 June 2015. Although IPPs were only available for offences with a maximum penalty of at least 10 years, this table does associate IPP prisoners with offences carrying a lesser maximum, including some summary only. This is down to errors in data collection: the relevant cases are likely to be those where the offender was sentenced for multiple offences, but not associated in the Ministry of Justice database with the most serious offence they committed. Work is underway to improve data quality in relation to IPPs.30-Jun-15All4,614Violence against the person1,628Sexual offences1,528Robbery942Theft Offences122Criminal damage and arson210Drug offences4Possession of weapons90Public order offences4Miscellaneous crimes against society79Summary Non-Motoring4Summary motoring1Offence not recorded2These figures are used for the purposes of statistical reporting; more reliable case information for the purposes of managing the prison estate is not centrally held. The figures in these tables have been drawn from administrative IT systems which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.

Aviation: Lasers

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) convicted for targeting aircraft with laser pens in each of the last 10 years.

Andrew Selous: It is not possible to identify from data held centrally by the Ministry of Justice, Home Office, or Crown Prosecution Service, how many people have been arrested, charged or convicted for targeting aircraft with laser pens. This information can only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Domestic Violence and Sexual Offences

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what changes have been made to the implementation of Achieving Best Evidence procedures in relation to investigations into domestic and sexual abuse in the last 10 years.

Mike Penning: Achieving Best Evidence (ABE) is a guide to best practice when interviewing vulnerable and intimidated witnesses. It was last updated in 2011 and we are currently revising this guidance.

Bryn Alyn Community: Criminal Injuries Compensation

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many payments of what amount were made by the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority to former residents of the Bryn Alyn Community in each year since 1992.

Mike Penning: The information requested is not held centrally.Three cases have been identified from central records where Bryn Alyn care home has been recorded as the incident location. The date and amount of each payment is shown below:Payment madeValue of payment (£)201020295201415150201516500As part of records management policy, records of older cases have been destroyed. It is likely that other cases relating to Bryn Alyn may have been included, but it is not possible to identify these.

Domestic Violence: Children

Vicky Foxcroft: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, if he will make an assessment of the effect on children of court-ordered contact with a perpetrator of domestic abuse.

Caroline Dinenage: The family courts take the issue of domestic violence extremely seriously. Where domestic violence is an issue in the family court, judges follow guidance in Practice Direction 12J. This guidance makes clear that where violence or abuse is admitted or proven, any child arrangements order must protect the safety and wellbeing of the child and the parent with whom the child is living, and must not expose them to the risk of further harm. In particular, the court must be satisfied that any contact ordered with a parent who has perpetrated violence or abuse is safe and in the best interests of the child.Where the court does conclude that direct contact is safe and beneficial for the child, it can impose conditions such as supervised contact to protect the child.

Ministry of Justice: Procurement

Thangam Debbonaire: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps his Department is taking to ensure the value for money of its contracts with the private sector.

Mike Penning: As part of improving the MoJ’s overall commercial capability a Contract Management Improvement Programme has been running across the department since early 2014, in order to implement and embed best practices in contract management. As part of this programme we have established new governance committees to strengthen our assurance of major contracts.We have also renegotiated or retendered a number of our significant contracts to improve value for money from our private sector contractors.

Courts: Rural Areas

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what account was taken of the effect on access to justice in rural areas in his Department's consultation on the Provision of the Court and Tribunal Estate.

Craig Whittaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to re-open court room provision in (a) Todmorden and (b) other rural areas.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Access to justice is not just about proximity to a court. We are committed to providing alternatives to travel, for example through making better use of technology, including video conferencing, and exploring whether we can appropriately make use of civic buildings for certain types of hearing.No decision has been taken to close any court. The consultation closed on 8 October and we are considering all responses carefully.

Ministry of Justice: Digital Technology

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what (a) funding his Department is undertaking and (b) projects his Department has planned as part of the Government's Digital Inclusion Strategy.

Mike Penning: My department adheres by the Digital Inclusion Strategy when building public facing digital services.We continually search for opportunities to improve digital inclusion across the justice system. An example of this is a joint project by the department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the National Offender Management Service, which created a virtual campus to help prisoners develop the skills they need to become more employable upon release. This has been used across government as an example of digital inclusion in action.

Family Proceedings: Court Orders

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps the Government is taking to ensure the enforcement of orders issued by the Family Court; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what measures are available to an individual to ensure the enforcement of orders by the Family Court.

Caroline Dinenage: If an order made in the family court is breached, a party named in that order may apply to the court to consider appropriate enforcement action.The family courts have the power to treat breach of an order as a contempt of court, punishable by imprisonment or a fine or both. Where a child arrangements order is breached the court can only make an enforcement order if it is satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that a party has breached the relevant order and has no good reason for doing so.

Entry Clearances: Appeals

Meg Hillier: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what estimate he has made of the average time taken to secure appeal hearings for people whose entry clearance applications have been refused.

Mr Shailesh Vara: Published figures can be found at the following link: www.gov.uk/government/statistics/tribunals-and-gender-recognition-certificate-statistics-quarterly-april-to-june-2015.

Prime Minister

Counter-terrorism

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 21 October 2015 to Question 12154, for what reasons he did not refer to any legal basis in domestic law during (a) his oral statement of 4 September 2015, Official Report, column 23 and (b) the Answer of 14 September 2015 to Question 9571; and if he will describe the legal basis in domestic law used for the targeted killing of British citizens outside declared war zones; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Cameron: I have nothing further to add.

Members: Surveillance

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Prime Minister, pursuant to the Answer of 11 September 2015 to Question 8501, on the Wilson Doctrine, what responsibilities he has in relation to the operation of the Wilson Doctrine; what responsibilities the Home Secretary has in relation to that Doctrine; and if he will make a statement.

Mr David Cameron: I refer the hon. Member to the position on the Wilson Doctrine set out by the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead (Mrs May) during the debate on 19 October 2015, Official Report, column 700.

Department for Culture, Media and Sport

Cultural Heritage: Protection

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what plans his Department has to protect cultural heritage abroad.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Government is committed to the protection of Cultural Heritage abroad.A £3m Iraqi Emergency Heritage Management Project – run by the British Museum over five years – will create a team of local experts to assess, document and stabilise afflicted sites in Iraq, and help begin the process of reconstruction and preservation of some of the world’s most precious culturalheritage. The Culture Secretary has also reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to ratifying the Hague Convention on the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict – with a plan to get it onto the statute books at the first opportunity. This isthe firstpart of a comprehensive Government plan to rescue ancient sites and objects from destruction by terrorists, wars or natural disasters across the world.

Broadband

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to his Answer of 13 October 2015 to Question 11722, which companies provide fixed broadband services in the UK.

Mr Edward Vaizey: Any company that complies with Ofcom's General Conditions Entitlement has authorisation to provide telecommunications services in the UK. This Department does not hold a comprehensive list of companies that provide fixed broadband services in the UK.

Telecommunications

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what comparative estimate he has made of the costs, other than initial offers, of a typical package of landline and broadband services in (a) the UK, (b) France, (c) Germany, (d) Spain and (e) Ireland.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The followingOfcom publications provide price comparisondata for the UK, France, Germany and Spain. Ofcom’s International Communications Market Report (December 2014)http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/market-data-research/market-data/communications-market-reports/cmr14/international/; and Ofcom’s European Broadband Scorecard (February 2015)http://stakeholders.ofcom.org.uk/binaries/research/broadband-research/scorecard/2015/European_Broadband_Scorecard_Q1_2015.pdf

Broadband: Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill

Phil Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what the planned date is for the roll-out of fibre broadband in (a) the Chryston area and (b) the constituency of Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill.

Mr Edward Vaizey: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 29 October 2015.The correct answer should have been:

UK Government has allocated £122 million for the two Scottish Superfast Broadband projects - the Highlands and Islands project and the Digital Scotland project, which covers the rest of Scotland. Following the completion of the current contracted projects by December 2017, superfast broadband coverage will be around 93% within the Digital Scotland project area.We estimate that 42,746 homes and businesses in Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill constituency will have superfast broadband available to them by the end of 2017.

Mr Edward Vaizey: UK Government has allocated £122 million for the two Scottish Superfast Broadband projects - the Highlands and Islands project and the Digital Scotland project, which covers the rest of Scotland. Following the completion of the current contracted projects by December 2017, superfast broadband coverage will be around 93% within the Digital Scotland project area.We estimate that 42,746 homes and businesses in Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill constituency will have superfast broadband available to them by the end of 2017.

Broadband: Cheshire

Antoinette Sandbach: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, pursuant to the Answer of 13 October 2015 to Question 11572, what steps he is taking to ensure that Connecting Cheshire delivers superfast broadband on schedule; and what penalties are in place to ensure that Broadband Delivery UK projects are delivered on time.

Mr Edward Vaizey: The supplier to the Connecting Cheshire project is paid only on completion of the milestones, and will only receive revenues from customers once the network is operational. BDUK works closely with the Connecting Cheshire project team to ensure delivery is on track and that action is taken to deal with any delays.

Department for Work and Pensions

British Airways: Pensions

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps he has taken to support British Airways pensioners since 14 September 2015; and what steps he has taken to encourage British Airways to fulfil its undertakings to pay RPI increases to both British Airways and New Airways Pension Schemes.

Justin Tomlinson: The Government appreciates the strength of feeling among British Airways Pensioners regarding increases to their pensions. However, the level of pension increases provided by the British Airways Pension Schemes mean that the schemes are meeting the minimum increases required by law. Anything above this level is a matter for the trustees.In responding to the motion to adjourn on 14 September, the Government made it clear that it is not appropriate for Ministers to comment on, or intervene in, the decisions of individual pension schemes.

Social Security Benefits: Homelessness

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will initiate a review of the welfare support available to homeless people.

Priti Patel: There are no plans to initiate a specific review of welfare support available to homeless people as our ongoing policy work takes account of different vulnerable groups, including homeless people.

Employment: Autism

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what proportion of people on the autism spectrum are in full-time employment; and what steps the Government is taking to support people on the autism spectrum into stable and well-paid employment.

Priti Patel: Government does not collect data specifically on employment rates for people with Autistic Spectrum Conditions (ASC).The Government is acting to raise awareness regarding employment of people with autism and to support them to take up employment. The Government’s Autism Strategy, and the updated Statutory Guidance published in March 2015, sets out in detail how Government will support the autism agenda nationally.The Autism Strategy can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/think-autism-an-update-to-the-government-adult-autism-strategyThe Statutory Guidance can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/adult-autism-strategy-statutory-guidance

State Retirement Pensions: British Nationals Abroad

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the prevalence of the delays in state pension payments to British citizens living abroad.

Justin Tomlinson: Over 90% of International State Pension customer claims or change of circumstances are cleared within target. Those that are not cleared within these timescales reflect unavoidable delays that are a consequence of international postal services, additional work to ensure that evidence submitted is appropriate and robust and requirements to liaise with international authorities.

Employment and Support Allowance: City of Westminster

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employment support allowance claimants in the City of Westminster have been referred to Maximus and the Work Programme since that company took over that contract.

Priti Patel: The information requested (up to June 2015) is published and available at:http://tabulation-tool.dwp.gov.uk/WorkProg/tabtool.htmlGuidance for users can be found at:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dwp-tabulation-tool-guidance

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Primates: Pets

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when she plans to introduce legislation to ban the sale of primates as pets.

George Eustice: Primates are wild animals with complex needs and it is already against the Animal Welfare Act 2006 to keep them in a domestic pet environment, particularly if kept alone rather than in a social group.

Slaughterhouses: Animal Welfare

Caroline Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps she is taking to promote EU member states only sending animals to slaughterhouses which meet the standards set by the World Organisation for Animal Health.

George Eustice: The Government is committed to pressing for all EU Member States to ensure that animals are only sent to slaughterhouses that meet high welfare standards. To this end, we will continue working with the European Commission to build on the success of their workshop in the Lebanon in March, in raising awareness of the requisite slaughter standards within the region and further afield. We will also continue to make a significant contribution to the work of OIE and development of global standards on animal welfare at slaughter.

Common Fisheries Policy

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether her Department has established that there is a basis to permit fishing at levels higher than the limits set by the Common Fisheries Policy.

George Eustice: Defra’s view is that fishing limits, in the form of Total Allowable Catches, need to be set in accordance with the objective of achieving the maximum sustainable yield exploitation rate by 2015, where possible, and 2020 at the latest.

Marine Conservation Zones and Special Areas of Conservation

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of UK seas out to 200nm are designated as (a) Special Areas of Conservation and (b) Marine Conservation Zones.

George Eustice: The Government is committed to creating a Blue Belt of Marine Protected Areas around our coast. Currently 7.6% of UK seas are designated as Special Areas of Conservation, 1.4% as Special Protection Areas and 8.0% as Marine Conservation Zones (known as Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas in Scotland). Accounting for overlaps, a total of 16.2% of UK seas are designated as Marine Protected Areas.

Fisheries: Quotas

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what information her Department holds on the number of assessed European fish stocks that are (a) fished at or below and (b) fished at higher than the maximum sustainable yield rate.

George Eustice: European Commission information suggests that in 2015, for stocks with full analytical assessments in the Atlantic EU waters, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea, (a) 32 stocks were being fished at or below the maximum sustainable yield (MSY) exploitation rate, and (b) 30 such stocks were being fished higher than the MSY exploitation rate.

Fisheries: Quotas

Mr Ben Bradshaw: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether it is her Department's position in EU Council negotiations to develop Multi-Annual Fisheries Plans that ensure fishing limits do not exceed the maximum sustainable yield.

George Eustice: The UK supports the development of Multi-Annual Fisheries Plans that assist the delivery of Common Fisheries Policy objectives, including the achievement of maximum sustainable yield exploitation rates by 2015 where possible, and by 2020 at the latest.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Pay

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much was paid in (a) year end and (b) in-year bonuses to officials of her Department in each of the last three years.

George Eustice: The table below sets out how much was paid to officials in the core-Department in end-year and in-year non-consolidated performance payments in each of the last three financial years.Financial YearEnd-year PaymentsIn-Year Payments2012-13£898,447£167,4902013-14£1,359,640£250,4232014-15£1,002,359£298,028The amounts include end-year payments made to Senior Civil Servants and staff at Grade 6 and below and in-year payments made to staff at Grade 6 and below.

China: Ivory

Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress the Government made during recent discussions with the Chinese Prime Minister in agreeing a timetable for closing legal ivory markets at international and domestic levels.

Rory Stewart: China is a key partner for the Government to work with in combating the illegal trade in wildlife. In the UK-China Joint Statement on Building a Global Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for the 21st Century, issued on 22nd October on the occasion of the State Visit of President Xi Jinping, the UK and China recognised the importance and urgency of combating the illegal wildlife trade, and committed to take active measures to tackle this global challenge. We warmly welcome the recent announcement by China that it intends, in due course, to close its legal domestic market for ivory, and will continue to work with China to encourage this to happen as soon as feasible.The Government is committed to maintaining the current global ban on any new international trade in ivory. In addition, the UK does not permit trade in raw ivory tusks of any age and we are pressing for this approach to be taken across the whole of the European Union.

Home Office

Refugees: Syria

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what priority is being given to abandoned and orphaned children in the selection of Syrian refugees likely to be offered a new home in the UK.

Richard Harrington: Holding answer received on 19 October 2015



The Syrian VPR is based on need. It prioritises those who cannot be supported effectively in their region of origin. We work closely with the UNHCR to identify cases that they deem in need of resettlement and we will continue this work to ensure we deliver our commitment to provide refuge to 20,000 Syrians.The UNHCR identifies people in need of resettlement based on the following criteria: women and girls at risk; survivors of violence and/or torture; refugees with legal and/or physical protection needs; refugees with medical needs or disabilities; children and adolescents at risk; persons at risk due to their sexual orientation or gender identity; and refugees with family links in resettlement countries.We are not expecting the refugees arriving in the first months of the scheme to include unaccompanied children.

Undocumented Migrants: Calais

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what recent assessment she has made of the adequacy of accommodation and support available to vulnerable migrants in Calais; and what steps she is taking to ensure such migrants are appropriately cared for.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much funding has been allocated to supporting people in migrant camps in Calais since August 2015

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the system for removing (a) vulnerable people and (b) victims of trafficking to places of safety from the migrant camps in Calais; and how much funding her Department has provided to improve that system.

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, with reference to the joint ministerial declaration on UK/French co-operation in tackling ongoing illegal migration in northern France and across Europe, issued on 20 August 2015, what support the Government has provided to the government of France for dedicated facilities for people claiming asylum, in order to draw them away from the frontier in Calais, as announced in that declaration.

James Brokenshire: The provision of humanitarian assistance for people on French soil is a matter for the French authorities. However, both Governments are committed to identifying and helping those people who are especially vulnerable or potential victims of trafficking. This is why the Home Secretary and French Interior Minister agreed in the UK-France Joint Declaration in August 2015 to set up a project to increase observation in the camps to identify those people; to provide medical help and protection where required; to put in place a system to transfer them to places of safety; and to ensure they are offered the appropriate advice and support from the French system. The project will assist with our commitment to tackle the organised criminal gangs who facilitate human trafficking, and we are working together with French law enforcement partners to identify and target these gangs to prevent this occurring in the first place. The UK has contributed almost £550,000 towards this project as part of the Joint Fund announced in September 2014. The 2015 Joint Declaration also commits the UK to a further financial contribution of £3.6 million per year for two years to support the French Government in a range of activities to reduce the numbers of migrants in Calais and the incentives for them to stay there.

Data Protection: Internet

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps her Department is taking to protect the security and privacy of citizens' online activity.

Mr John Hayes: The public and Parliament deserve legislation that provides adequate protection for both their privacy and their security. That is why the Government intends to publish a Bill in the Autumn for pre-legislative scrutiny by a Joint Committee of Parliament, responding to the recommendations of three independent reviews in this area: those conducted by the Intelligence and Security Committee of Parliament, the Royal United Services Institute, and the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, David Anderson QC.

Hate Crime

Fiona Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department, Official Report, columns 11-12, whether her Department's planned proposals on tackling hate speech and extremism will affect Christian ministers' ability to preach biblical values in non-religious locations.

Karen Bradley: Nothing that the Government is doing or planning to do to tackle hate speech and extremism will affect Christian ministers’ ability to preach biblical values in non-religious locations. Our work will protect the freedom to exchange religious ideas - a fundamental part of our thriving democracy - against the extremists and hate preachers who shut down debate and condemn anyone who disagrees with them.

Offences against Children

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to ensure that the questioning by police of children and vulnerable adults who are possible victims of child abuse is both effective at gathering evidence and sensitive to the vulnerability of those being interviewed.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what training her Department provides to police officers and social workers for interviewing children and vulnerable adults who are possible victims of child abuse.

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what guidance her Department issues to police forces on the presence of social workers at the questioning of children and vulnerable adults who are possible victims of child abuse.

Karen Bradley: Tackling abuse is a priority for this Government. We will continue the work of overhauling how our police, social services and other agencies work together to protect vulnerable children. To this end, we have prioritised child sexual abuse as a national threat like serious and organised crime, which means police forces now have a duty to collaborate with each other across force boundaries to safeguard children.The provision of police training is an operational matter. The College of Policing and the National Policing Lead for child protection and abuse investigation have set the requirement for all forces to train all new and existing police staff to respond to child sexual exploitation and abuse, including call handlers, Police Community Support Officers, police officers, detectives and specialist investigators.The College of Policing has issued Achieving Best Evidence guidance and training for all officers engaged in interviewing children and vulnerable witnesses. This includes training on the sensitivity needed when dealing with victims and witnesses who may be vulnerable as well as working with partners – such as social workers – and their involvement in interviews.Specialist courses for child sexual abuse and rape specialist investigators also expand on these requirements in relation to interviewing children and vulnerable adults.The role of social workers in these investigations, including their training, is a matter for the Department for Education. The guidance issued by DfE in March 2015, “Working Together to Safeguard Children”, sets out how social workers and their managers, as well as other agencies including the police, should work together and follow the Achieving Best Evidence guidance.The Department of Health are responsible for the training of social workers working with vulnerable adults who may have been sexually abused as children or in adulthood.

Offences against Children: Humberside

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, which of the recommendations of the report by the Independent Police Complaints Commission on Operation Gullane have been implemented; and what form that implementation has taken.

Karen Bradley: The IPCC report on Operation Gullane makes a number of recommendations relating to police investigation of non-recent child sexual abuse.Since the publication of those recommendations the Home Office has:• prioritised child sexual abuse as a national threat to empower police forces to maximise specialist skills and expertise to prevent offending and resolve cases• provided £1.7 million to Operation Hydrant which coordinates the handling of multiple non-recent child sexual abuse investigations specifically concerning institutionsIn addition:• the College of Policing has issued updated Authorised Professional Practice guidance for police in relation to child abuse and exploitation, and• a joint National Policing Lead and CPS review panel has been established to re-examine non-recent cases of sexual abuse where a decision was made that no further action would be taken and identify whether any issues require further exploration and investigation.Combined, these measures significantly improve the quality of police investigations non-recent child sexual abuse.I understand that the IPCC will write directly to the Honourable Member regarding implementation of the report’s recommendations.

Terrorism: Finance

Mr Christopher Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, on how many occasions did the National Crime Agency received notice of suspicion of terrorist financing from private sector institutions, under Part III of the Terrorism Act 2000, in the last 12 months for which information is available.

Mr John Hayes: Holding answer received on 27 October 2015



In total, between 1 October 2014 and 30 September 2015 the National Crime Agency received 1,216 Suspicious Activity Reports under the provisions of the Terrorism Act 2000.

Refugees: Syria

Dr Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what progress is being made to facilitate the arrival of Syrian refugees to Northern Ireland under the vulnerable persons relocation scheme.

Richard Harrington: The Home Office is working very closely with officials from the Office of the First Minister and the Deputy First Minister (OFMdFM) to assist Northern Ireland’s offer to welcome Syrians in need of help. At local level, the Home Office is represented in Northern Ireland at OFMdFM’s Syrian Refugee Strategic and Operational Planning Groups. We are also assisting OFMdFM officials in introducing the processes needed to enable the first intake of Syrian refugees to arrive in Northern Ireland.

Radicalism

Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what independent oversight arrangement has been established to monitor the Channel programme.

Mr John Hayes: We continue to monitor and evaluate the Channel programme to ensure that it is as effective as it can be and that good practice is shared across the country. Channel evaluation is based on comprehensive monitoring systems which track outcomes over time and robust evaluation techniques that assess effectiveness.

Dual Nationality

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people in (a) the UK and (b) London have gained dual citizenship (i) in total and (ii) with citizenship of each EU member state in each year from 2010 to 2015 to date.

James Brokenshire: Holding answer received on 28 October 2015



No statistical information is available showing whether British citizens hold another citizenship.

Police: Stun Guns

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many times tasers have been used by the police in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Mike Penning: Holding answer received on 28 October 2015



The Home Office does not hold information centrally on the number of times Taser have been used by the police in each London borough over the last five years.The Home Office publishes information on the number of times Taser have been used by police forces. The following table shows the number of times Taser has been used over the last five years by the London Metropolitan police and City of London police force.Taser use by forces in London between 2010 and 201420102011201220132014City of London57121320Metropolitan3593787552,1101,942Total3643857672,1231,962Source: Police use of Taser, England and WalesNotes:1. Since 2009 there was a continual roll out of Taser which saw all forces using Taser in 20132. Care should be taken when making comparisons between forces on the level of Taser use. This is due to the varying data quality across the forces and that the level of Taser use it likely to be highly correlated with the size of the population in the force area. Forces will also have different policies regarding Taser use.3. There are a number of factors that may lead to an increase or a decrease in the use of Taser. These figures should not be used to interpret how any single factor is changing, for example, the level of crime.

Hertfordshire Constabulary: Audit

Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether Hertfordshire Constabulary's reserves have been subject to CIFPA auditing for the 2014-15 financial year.

Mike Penning: Hertfordshire Constabulary’s final 2014/15 Statement of Accounts are published on the force website. The accounts have been independently audited and include the force’s level of reserves for 2014/15.

Hertfordshire Constabulary: Income

Graham Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of annual income has been held in reserve by Herefordshire Constabulary in each of the past five years.

Mike Penning: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Asylum: Afghanistan

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many (a) forced and (b) voluntary former unaccompanied asylum-seeking children returnees were not accepted by Afghanistan and sent back to the UK in (a) 2010, (b) 2011, (c) 2012, (d) 2013, (e) 2014 and (f) 2015 to date.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Home Office: Training

Louise Haigh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many case workers in her Department received Keeping Children Safe Tier 3 training in 2014.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Undocumented Migrants

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment she has made of the success of her Department's policies in supporting the UK Border Force to tackle illegal immigration into the UK.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Stansted Airport: Immigration Controls

Mr Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the (a) maximum and (b) average recorded waiting time was for an EU passport holder at customs at London Stansted airport on each day of September 2015; and if she will make a statement.

James Brokenshire: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Police: Stun Guns

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many and what proportion of incidents in which tasers were used by the police in London in each of the last five years resulted in (a) an arrest, (b) a charge and (c) a conviction.

Mike Penning: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Police: Stun Guns

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what proportion of people on whom the police used tasers were (a) BAME, (b) women and (c) under the age of 18 in each London borough in each of the last five years.

Mike Penning: The Home Office has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Ministry of Defence

Type 26 Frigates

Toby Perkins: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether it is his policy to procure 13 Type 26 frigates.

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, when the first Type 26 frigate will be ready for service.

Mr Philip Dunne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 10 September 2015 to Question number 8460 to the hon. Member for Glasgow South West (Chris Stephens).



Type 26 Frigates
(Word Document, 14.45 KB)

RAF Akrotiri: Refugees

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with the Cypriot authorities about who has responsibility for the safety and wellbeing of refugees arriving at RAF Akrotiri.

Penny Mordaunt: Under the collaborative arrangements in place since 2003 between the UK and the Republic of Cyprus, the Sovereign Base Areas Administration (SBAA) and the Republic of Cyprus officials are co-operating on the handling and processing of the migrants. Their claims will be heard by the Republic of Cyprus should they claim asylum. The SBAA remains responsible for their safety and well-being in the Dhekelia transit facility until they are passed over to a Republic of Cyprus reception facility. If they are granted asylum they will be free to live and apply for work permits in the Republic of Cyprus and have the same rights as if they landed directly into the Republic of Cyprus. The SBAA has the obligation to meet the costs incurred by the Republic of Cyprus in handling the claims and supporting the migrants whilst their cases are being heard and, if they are successful, for up to one year.If a migrant does not claim asylum, the SBAA as the territorial administration of this Overseas Territory remains responsible for their safety and wellbeing whilst detained pending deportation.

RAF Akrotiri: Refugees

Maria Eagle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to prepare a deal with further refugees arriving by sea at RAF Akrotiri.

Penny Mordaunt: There is no evidence the migrants were intending to arrive in the Sovereign Base Areas (SBA). The arrival was due to one of two boats having engine failure off the peninsula upon which RAF Akrotiri is located. The Sovereign Base Areas Administration (SBAA) has a protocol with the Republic of Cyprus to consider claims by asylum seekers arriving directly in the SBAs. If they do not claim asylum or their claim to asylum is rejected the SBAA will take steps to remove the migrants to their country of origin.The SBA Police Maritime unit is conducting increased patrolling of the waters within its jurisdiction, using enhanced navigational aids, including a 24-hour radar capability. The Cyprus Operational Battalion are providing additional manpower for base security. The Republic of Cyprus has indicated it has increased their maritime patrols in their adjacent territorial waters. Security is also supported by RAF Search and Rescue helicopters from 84 Squadron based at RAF Akrotiri.If a boat is in distress in SBA territorial waters the SBAA has a duty under international law to provide aid and assistance to protect lives.

Submarines

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what discussions his Department has had with Babcock on the proposal to extend the limit of restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies to nuclear powered submarines at HMNB Clyde from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish the report by the (a) Nuclear Propulsion Integrated Project Team and (b) Frazer Nash on plans to extend the time limit of restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies to nuclear powered submarines from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has commissioned an Independent Nuclear Safety Assessment report on plans to extend the time limit of restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies to nuclear powered submarines from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what the required timescale is for the restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies with reference to the publication Safety Shutdown Procedure for Astute Class Vessels, published in 2012.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether his Department has instructed Babcock to extend the time a nuclear powered submarine can be without electrical power from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the level of financial saving accruing to Babcock from the proposed extension of the time unit of the restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what analysis his Department has conducted of the effect on safety of the proposed extension of the restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Brendan O'Hara: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment his Department has made of the reasons for the proposed extension of the time limit of restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies to nuclear powered submarines at HMNB Clyde from 20 minutes up to a maximum of three hours.

Mr Philip Dunne: The Ministry of Defence regularly reviews nuclear related processes and procedures with industry partners and with regulators, which includes independent safety scrutiny. Safety remains our priority.I cannot comment on specific timescales for the restoration of Electrical Shore Supplies to nuclear powered submarines nor reports produced in connection with this, as to do so would, or would be likely to, prejudice the capability, effectiveness or security of the Armed Forces.

Armed Forces: Help to Buy Scheme

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, how many applications have been made to the forces help to buy scheme in (a) each region in England, (b) Wales, (c) Scotland and (d) Northern Ireland in each month since that scheme's inception; and how many such applications have been successful in each of those areas.

Mark Lancaster: The Forces Help to Buy scheme was introduced in April 2014 and has been popular and successful amongst Service personnel and their families. To date, the scheme has helped over 5,000 military personnel purchase their own property, and a further 1,900 approved applications are awaiting the completion of the property purchase.The information requested is not readily available, but the following table shows the number of recipients, by English regions, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, where applications have been successful.RegionForces Help To Buy Recipients (Numbers)England - 4,300South West1,100East Midlands650South East600Yorkshire and The Humber450North West450East of England350West Midlands350North East300London50Wales250Scotland400Northern Ireland50  Note: Figures have been roundedThe Forces Help to Buy demonstrates the Department’s commitment to strengthen the Armed Forces covenant, ensuring that personnel and their families are not disadvantaged by their service. By giving our Service personnel this extra help, those who aspire to be homeowners will be able to set down roots and get onto the property ladder, giving their families the domestic stability that many of us take for granted.

Defence: Expenditure

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, for what reason he included previously excluded expenditure such as war pensions in the latest UK response to NATO's defence spending requirement.

Michael Fallon: From time to time we update our Defence spending calculations, to ensure that we are fully reflecting the NATO guidelines

Ministry of Defence: Raytheon

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, which events held by his Department were sponsored by Raytheon in the last 12 months.

Mr Philip Dunne: Raytheon acted as the Hackathon sponsor at the Chief Information Officer's Information Symposium in June. No other events have been sponsored by the company in the last 12 months.

Ministry of Defence: Raytheon

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what hospitality was provided to (a) Ministers and officials of his Department and (b) members of the armed forces by Raytheon in the last 12 months.

Mr Philip Dunne: I attended a dinner hosted by Raytheon on 21 January 2015. No further Ministers, Senior Military personnel or Ministry of Defence officials have received any other form of hospitality.

HM Treasury

Small Businesses: Loans

Christian Matheson: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when his Department plans to respond to the Eleventh Report of the Treasury Committee, Conduct and competition in SME lending, Session 2014-15, HC 204, published on 10 March 2015.

Guto Bebb: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, when he plans to respond to the recommendations of the Treasury Committee's report, Conduct and competition in SME lending, published on 16 March 2015.

Harriett Baldwin: The Parliament, and its then Treasury Select Committee, dissolved shortly after this report was published and HM Treasury was not able to prepare a response before dissolution.HM Treasury is considering the Committee’s recommendations and will be responding to the new Committee in due course.

Financial Services: Taxation

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what his policy is on the introduction of a financial transaction tax in (a) the UK and (b) partnership with other taxation authorities.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK has a financial transaction tax. Stamp tax on shares raises significant revenue from transactions in UK equities.The UK has no plans to introduce a financial transaction tax in partnership with other tax authorities. Such a tax would only be effective if applied globally, and there is currently no prospect of global agreement.

Private Rented Housing: Tax Allowances

Stewart McDonald: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on small investors of planned restrictions on the relief on finance costs for landlords of residential property.

Mr David Gauke: The government does not expect the restriction to tax relief for finance costs to have a significant impact on small investors, with only 1 in 5 landlords affected. Overall, the OBR believe the impact on the housing market will be small and, taking account of the other measures in the Summer Budget, have not adjusted their forecast for house prices. The Productivity Plan published alongside the Summer Budget will also increase the number of opportunities available to small investors. It includes a number of measures to make the planning system quicker, cheaper and more responsive to local needs.

Motor Vehicles: Insurance

Colleen Fletcher: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of auto-renewals on competition in the private motor insurance market.

Sir David Amess: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Government has made of the effect on consumers of the practice of insurers in signing customers up to automatic policy renewals without the option to opt-out; and if he will make a statement.

Sir David Amess: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on competition in the private motor insurance market of automatic policy renewals; and if he will make a statement.

Sir David Amess: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment the Government has made of the effect on consumers of the practice of insurers in not giving details of no claims bonuses to customers in their renewal notice; and if he will make a statement.

Sir David Amess: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect on consumers of the practice of insurers in automatically signing-up customers to annual policy renewals without their explicit consent; and if he will make a statement.

Harriett Baldwin: This is a matter for the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), who are operationally independent from Government.The question has been passed on to the FCA. The FCA will reply directly to the honourable member by letter. A copy of the letter will be placed in the Library of the House.

Fire Services: Finance

Danny Kinahan: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what budget reductions he plans to the fire and rescue service.

Greg Hands: Funding for fire and rescue authorities, national resilience and other central programmes will be determined as part of the Spending Review.

Working Tax Credit: NHS

Justin Madders: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of proposed changes to tax credits on (a) nurses and (b) other NHS staff.

Damian Hinds: No such assessment has been made.

Insurance

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will have discussions with the Financial Conduct Authority on ensuring that when insurance companies issue annual renewal notices for policies they also issue a clear reference to the premium paid 12 months previously.

Colleen Fletcher: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on insurers not giving details of no claims bonuses to customers in their renewal notice.

Colleen Fletcher: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received on insurers signing customers up to future auto-renewals without the option to opt out.

Harriett Baldwin: Treasury Ministers and officials receive representations and have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.As has been the practice adopted by previous Administrations it is not Government policy to normally release details of such meetings.

Tourism: VAT

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential effect on employment in the hospitality sector of reducing the VAT rate in that sector to 10 per cent.

Mr David Gauke: The Government has reviewed the economic case for a reduction in VAT for the hospitality sector.The Government position was set out in the Westminster Hall debate on 17 March 2015.

Estate Agents: Money Laundering

Bill Wiggin: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many investigations into estate agents have taken place under money laundering regulations in the last five years.

Bill Wiggin: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether estate agents who hold no client money fall under the scope of the Money Laundering Regulations 2007.

Harriett Baldwin: In 2014-15 HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) issued 677 penalties to the total value of £768,000 across all the sectors it regulates. HMRC considers that releasing the number of investigations and visits made to businesses in different sectors could enable opportunists to identify where resource is being focussed, allowing criminals to arrange their activities accordingly to escape challenge. HMRC must protect information which could be used by criminals in this way and therefore is not able to release numbers on how many investigations are conducted in the Estate Agency Businesses (EAB) sector. HMRC took on supervision of Estate Agency Businesses under the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) on 1 April 2014. Since becoming supervisor HMRC has used a range of interventions such as face to face visits, telephone interventions and webinars to reach hundreds of businesses in the EAB sector, and test and challenge their compliance with the Money Laundering Regulations. In addition to direct interventions, as supervisor, HMRC conducts risking work which involves using a range of sophisticated data exploitation tools - including their state-of-the-art Connect system - to identify cases which warrant further investigation. It is not possible to quantify how many businesses have been looked at in this way, as it is a routine aspect of supervision for HMRC. Where cases require criminal investigation, they are passed to HMRC's Fraud Investigation Service. HMRC is unable to disclose details of cases which are currently under criminal investigation for operational reasons.I can confirm that estate agents that do not hold client money fall within the scope of the Money Laundering Regulations 2007.

Developing Countries: Sustainable Development

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps he is taking to achieve UN Sustainable Development Goal 10 in the UK.

Mr David Gauke: The government is committed to tackling inequality. According to the latest ONS statistics, original income inequality in the UK is at its lowest level since 1989.The government believes that the best way to reduce inequality and poverty is through tackling unemployment, and getting workless households into work. Employment has increased by 2 million since the 2010 election, and the percentage of workless households is lower than at any point under the last Labour government.The Government is tackling low pay by introducing a new National Living Wage (NLW) for workers aged 25 and above from April 2016. On current OBR forecasts, by 2020 the NLW will be over £9 an hour, meaning a full-time worker aged 25 or above will earn over £4,800 a year more in cash terms than under the current National Minimum Wage.

Armed Forces: Welfare Tax Credits

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many serving members of each branch of the armed forces are in receipt of (a) child and (b) working tax credits.

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many serving members of each branch of the armed forces are in receipt of (a) child and (b) working tax credits.

Damian Hinds: I refer the member to the answer I provided on the 13 July 2015 to question 14259:http://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2015-07-08/6266/

National Asset Register

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will issue an updated National Asset Register.

Greg Hands: The decision to stop the publication of a National Asset Register was made before the first publication of the Whole of Government Accounts for 2009-10. The Chancellor of the Exchequer considers public spending measures as part of the spending review process and will present his spending review to the House on 25 November.

Welfare Tax Credits

Jonathan Ashworth: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 26 October 2015 to Question 12704, what the income range is of the half of tax credit claimants with the highest income.

Damian Hinds: The latest information on the number of tax credit recipient families by range of income can be found in the published statistics https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-and-working-tax-credits-statistics-finalised-annual-awards-2013-to-2014

Iron and Steel: Redcar

Tom Blenkinsop: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will provide financial support to Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council to compensate for the loss in business rates due to closure of the Redcar steel works.

Greg Hands: The Government has announced an £80 million support package for Redcar. We are working with the local Task Force to design a package that will include funding for workers to retrain, support to start their own business, and help for local businesses to grow and create jobs.

Insolvency

Andy Slaughter: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate HM Revenue and Customs has made of the amount of tax it will collect should the funding of insolvency litigation change under the provisions of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Mr David Gauke: HM Revenue and Customs has not made an estimate of the amount of tax it will collect should the funding of insolvency litigation change under the provisions of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012.

Working Age Benefits: Armed Forces

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many former members of each branch of the armed forces are in receipt of (a) child and (b) working tax credits.

Damian Hinds: The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Air Passenger Duty: Scotland

Tommy Sheppard: To ask Mr Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with Ministers in the Scottish Government on the transfer of responsibility for Air Passenger Duty to the Scottish Government.

Damian Hinds: The government is devolving Air Passenger Duty to the Scottish Parliament through the Scotland Bill. Ministers are in ongoing discussions with the Scottish Government about all aspects of the Scotland Bill and the terms of the fiscal framework.

Scotland Office

Foreign Relations: Scotland

Peter Grant: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, on how many occasions officials of his Department have contacted representatives of a foreign government to ask for an account of private meetings or discussions held between representatives of that government and Scottish Government Ministers in each of the last five years.

David Mundell: On no occasion have Scotland Office officials contacted representatives of a foreign government to ask for an account of private meetings or discussions held between representatives of that government and Scottish Government Ministers.

Opencast Mining: Scotland

Ian Murray: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent representations he has received on measures to rehabilitate land which has been defaced by opencast mining; and what steps he plans to take in response to those representations.

David Mundell: I have had a number of meetings and discussions on the important issue of opencast restoration over recent months, including with Local Authorities affected and colleagues from HM Treasury, the Department of Energy and Climate Change and the Scottish Government.

Department for Energy and Climate Change

Nuclear Reactors

Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, how many meetings her Department has had with Westinghouse officials to discuss the potential partnership between Westinghouse, interested nuclear industry partners and the Government on developing small modular nuclear reactors.

Andrea Leadsom: Officials within my Department have met Westinghouse on two occasions to receive their proposal on small modular reactors (SMRs). Receipt of this proposal was acknowledged by officials and it will be considered as part of Government’s wider work on SMRs which includes evidence building through the techno-economic assessment and engagement with SMR vendors where appropriate.

Fracking: East Riding

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, if she will make it her policy to ensure that no shale gas extraction is allowed in areas which supply the aquifers for drinking water to Hull and East Yorkshire.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Fracking: East Riding

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of shale gas extraction on aquifers in East Yorkshire.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Solar Power

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, what recent assessment her Department has made of the ability of the UK solar industry to meet service demand; and if she will make a statement.

Andrea Leadsom: The Department for Energy and Climate Change has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Cabinet Office

Drugs: Death

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths have been caused by people taking legal highs in (a) Copeland constituency, (b) Cumbria and (c) England in each of the last five years.

Mr Rob Wilson: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.



UKSA Letter to Member - Taking Legal Highs
(PDF Document, 281.18 KB)

Cabinet Committees: Airports

Richard Burden: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will publish the minutes of all meetings of the Special Cabinet Economic Affairs (Airports) Sub-Committee; and if he will make it his policy to publish the minutes of future such meetings.

Mr Oliver Letwin: Information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees, including when and how often they meet and which Ministers have attended, is generally not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.

National Security: Iron and Steel

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether the National Security Council has discussed the implications for national security of the recently announced closures of steel plants.

Mr Oliver Letwin: Information relating to the proceedings of Cabinet Committees is generally not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion. However we are committed to supporting a strong and viable steel industry, and that means taking action across all the areas.We are tackling unfair trade practices in a number of ways. We have already supported and voted for the renewal of anti-dumping measures at an EU level, and lobbied successfully for an investigation into cheap imports of Reinforcing Steel Bar. We have addressed the impact of climate change policies, with over £50 million of support given to the steel industry to mitigate increasing electricity costs. We are working with the Commission to quickly gain approval for proposals to provide additional relief for the impact of indirect low-carbon energy policy costs.Once in place, this will save energy intensive industries, like the steel industry hundreds of millions of pounds over the next five years.We are driving up the number of public contracts won by UK steel manufacturers and their partners through fair and open competition. The National Infrastructure Plan contains projects which will use British steel, including: Crossrail– with 4 UK based companies providing over 50,000 tonnes of steel; and HS2- where Government has already given noticeof the thousands of tonnes of steel that will be needed.

House of Commons Commission

Parliament: Legal Profession

Louise Haigh: To ask the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, when the Commission plans to publish the list of Roll A Parliamentary Agents for the current Parliament.

Tom Brake: The current list of Roll A Parliamentary Agents as at May 2015 is available on the Parliamentary Internet at:http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/pbagents.htm

City of London Remembrancer

Louise Haigh: To ask the hon. Member for Carshalton and Wallington representing the House of Commons Commission, if the Commission will review the right of access for the City of London Remembrancer to the Chamber of the House.

Tom Brake: I understand that the Remembrancer is one of some 17 Roll A Parliamentary Agents who work with the promoters of private Bills. Parliamentary Agents are permitted to observe proceedings from the Under Gallery in the Chamber, that is, the visitors’ seats “under the gallery” facing the Speaker, for the purposes of their work. Other visitors may also sometimes sit in the Under Gallery.Access to the Chamber and its surroundings is not a matter for the Commission.

Department of Health

Pregnant Women: Mental Health Services

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the net change has been in the number of inpatient perinatal mental health beds since 2010.

Alistair Burt: An error has been identified in the written answer given on 23 October 2015.The correct answer should have been:

Since 2010 there has been a net reduction in the number of inpatient perinatal mental health beds from 118 beds in 2010 to 115 beds in 2015.Since 2010 there has been a net reduction of mother and baby units from 17 units to 15 units.

Alistair Burt: Since 2010 there has been a net reduction in the number of inpatient perinatal mental health beds from 118 beds in 2010 to 115 beds in 2015.Since 2010 there has been a net reduction of mother and baby units from 17 units to 15 units.

NHS: Finance

Dr Paul Monaghan: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, with reference to the oral contribution of the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for NHS Productivity of 9 July 2015, Official Report, House of Lords, column 286, on proposals for an independent inquiry on the sustainability of the NHS, if he will take steps to ensure that any such inquiry (a) identifies possible consequential effects and (b) does not adversely affect the Scottish block grant.

Alistair Burt: There is no plan to launch an independent inquiry into the sustainability of the National Health Service and there will therefore be no consequential effects on the devolved administrations or adverse effects to the Scottish block grant.The Government remains committed to the principles of the NHS, enshrined in the NHS Constitution and in working with the NHS in implementing its own plan for the future of the NHS – the Five Year Forward View. By 2020-21, the Government will increase funding for the NHS by £10 billion a year in real terms compared to 2014-15 to support the transformation of services across the country.

Pregnant Women: Discrimination

Maria Caulfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what assessment his Department has made of the annual cost to the NHS of the health effects of pregnancy and maternity-related discrimination at work.

Ben Gummer: The Department of Health does not collect data centrally on the cost to the National Health Service of work related pregnancy and maternity discrimination.However, the Government commissioned an extensive research project in 2014 into perceived pregnancy and maternity discrimination in Great Britain. The research was jointly managed and funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, supported by the Government Equalities Office.This is the largest ever study of pregnancy and maternity-related discrimination conducted in Great Britain. Interim findings were published in July 2015 and can be found at:http://www.equalityhumanrights.com/publication/pregnancy-and-maternity-related-discrimination-and-disadvantage-first-findings-surveys-employers-and-0The majority of employers reported that it was in their interests to support pregnant women and those on maternity leave and they agreed that statutory rights relating to pregnancy and maternity are reasonable and easy to implement. However, the research found that 11% of women reported that they were either dismissed; made compulsorily redundant, where others in their workplace were not; or treated so poorly they felt they had to leave their job.Final results, including how experiences vary by employer size, are due to be published later this year. The results of the final report will inform any potential Government action.

NHS: Finance

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what changes there were in the relative weighting of economic deprivation within the primary health care funding formula in each complete financial year since 2010.

Alistair Burt: It is not possible to estimate the relative weighting specifically for deprivation, as all the factors taken into account in the formula are interrelated.

Ambulance Services: Emergency Calls

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many ambulance calls were responded to by the (a) police and (b) fire service in (i) England, (ii) Greater Manchester and (iii) Denton and Reddish constituency in each of the last five years.

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what proportion of ambulances responding to the most serious calls failed to respond within eight minutes in (a) England, (b) Greater Manchester and (c) Denton and Reddish constituency in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: The information requested is not available in the format requested.

General Practitioners: Telephone Services

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, if NHS England will take steps to terminate contracts for 0844 numbers entered into by GP surgeries.

Alistair Burt: Regulations introduced in 2010 prevented general practitioner practices from entering into, renewing or extending a contract for telephone services unless it was satisfied that, looking at the arrangements as a whole, patients would not pay more to make calls to the practice than they would to make calls to a geographical number.The number of practices using premium rate numbers is reducing as contracts come to an end, and a large number of practices using 084 numbers also have a local alternative. NHS England continues to work with practices that have premium rate numbers and will review progress periodically.

Obesity

Andrew Gwynne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the level of (a) NHS and (b) other expenditure for which his Department is responsible has been for the (i) treatment and (ii) prevention of obesity in each of the last five years.

Jane Ellison: Information on National Health Service expenditure on the treatment and prevention of obesity is not collected centrally. Decisions on spending are a matter for local NHS organisations.It is not possible to provide comprehensive information about the Department’s expenditure on the treatment and prevention of obesity because a wide range of teams across the Department and other partners contribute to this policy. The Department has invested in a number of nationally-coordinated programmes which contribute to tackling obesity including the National Child Measurement Programme, NHS Health Checks, Change4Life, the School Games and Change4Life School Sports Clubs.Local authorities have been given ring-fenced funding of £8.49 billion over three years, 2013/14 to 2015/16, to help tackle public health issues including overweight and obesity.

General Practitioners: Databases

Mr Jamie Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the Answer of 23 July 2015 to Question 7630, how many GP practices in each pathfinder area have signed up to care.data to date in total.

George Freeman: The information requested is provided in the following table:Pathfinder clinical commissioning groups.GP PracticesBlackburn with Darwen23Leeds15West Hampshire30Somerset56

Diabetes

Mrs Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many people in (a) St Albans, (b) Hertfordshire and (c) England and Wales have type 1 or 2 diabetes; and what steps he is taking to ensure that (i) there is early diagnosis and treatment of both type 1 and 2 diabetes and (ii) that prevention measures for type 2 are in place.

Jane Ellison: The number of people diagnosed with diabetes in St Albans, Hertfordshire and England and Wales living with type 1 or type 2 diabetes is shown in the table below.Number of people diagnosed with diabetes 2013/14St Albans4,833Hertfordshire50,047England2,814,004*Wales177,212*Source: Public Health Outcomes Framework http://www.phoutcomes.info/Note: * represents all patients aged 17 and over who have been diagnosed with diabetes and included on general practitioner (GP) registers. No distinction is made in the type of diabetes that has been diagnosed, i.e. type 1 or type 2 diabetes. The NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme (DPP) is a joint initiative between NHS England, Public Health England and Diabetes UK, that aims to deliver an evidence based behavioural programme to support people to reduce their risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The NHS Health Check programme provides an opportunity to help prevent and detect type 2 diabetes, with an estimated 20,000 new cases of diabetes and kidney disease identified earlier each year.Improving outcomes for those at risk of and with diabetes is of great concern to this Government. Building on the DPP, the Department is developing its plans in this area. These will be published in due course.

Autism: Diagnosis

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how his Department monitors whether NHS England is appropriately assuring itself of clinical commissioning groups' performance on autism diagnosis for (a) children and (b) adults.

Mr Nicholas Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department and NHS England are taking to ensure that autism diagnosis waiting times for (a) children and (b) adults meet NICE guidance in Newcastle upon Tyne East constituency.

Alistair Burt: In general NHS England is required to assess the performance of each clinical commissioning group (CCG) to ensure that CCGs are commissioning safe, high quality and cost effective services, to achieve the best possible outcomes for patients. Under the Health and Social Care Act (2012), NHS England makes an annual assessment of CCGs each financial year and publishes a summary report. The Secretary of State for Health keeps NHS England’s performance in discharging its functions under review, which includes NHS England’s assurance of CCGs. The Department has discussed with NHS England the difficulties that people on the autistic spectrum can have in getting an appropriate diagnosis in a timely manner. With support from the Department, NHS England and the Association of Directors of Social Services will undertake a series of visits to CCGs where there is good practice in meeting the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) Quality Standard 51 Autism, and to those that do not, with the aim of supporting more consistent provision. The National Autism Programme Board will monitor reported progress from NHS England against the commitments in the Autism strategy including the implementation of NICE guidance.Newcastle Gateshead CCG is investing in Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust to provide improved services for adults with autism with an initial focus to reduce waiting times in line with NICE guidelines and then for further improvement to be made in the core service. Within 18-24 months the intention is for the autism pathway to be embedded in mainstream services with the addition of a specialist autism service which will provide training, support, liaison and assess more complex cases. By the end of this year, it is expected that all children’s services will have reached a 95% target for all referralsto be assessed and in treatment within 12 weeks and for 70% of referrals to be assessed and in treatment within six weeks.

Mental Health Services: Inspections

Luciana Berger: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what (a) proportion and (b) number of mental health providers have been inspected by the Care Quality Commission under its new inspection regime.

Ben Gummer: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 16 October 2015 to Question 11780.

Clinical Commissioning Groups

Julian Sturdy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress he has made on reform of the NHS funding formula to clinical commissioning groups.

Alistair Burt: NHS England has responsibility for determining allocations to clinical commissioning groups (CCGs). The Advisory Committee on Resource Allocation, an independent advisory group, is undertaking a full review of the formula used to determine allocations for individual CCGs. The review is nearing completion and we expect their recommendations to be presented at the NHS England Board meeting in December

Care Homes

Charlotte Leslie: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what information the Care Quality Commission holds on the quality of care in care homes.

Ben Gummer: The Care Quality Commission (CQC) is the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England.As at 12 October 2015, the CQC has published 8,318 ratings for adult social care providers since it began inspecting this sector using its new inspection regime on 1 October 2014. Of these, 42 providers have been rated ‘outstanding’, 4,889 as ‘good’, 2,889 as ‘requires improvement’ and 558 as inadequate.The CQC’s State of Care Report 2014-15, published on 15 October 2015, describes what it has found in its care home inspection programme.

Death: Weather

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps his Department is taking to reduce excess winter deaths.

Jane Ellison: Public Health England (PHE) publishes the Cold Weather Plan for England to avoid preventable illness and deaths in winter by setting out a series of actions for organisations, communities and individuals, to take throughout the year as well as in response to episodes of severe winter weather. The national annual flu plan aims to minimise the health impact of flu through effective monitoring, prevention and treatment, including the immunisation of groups eligible to receive the flu vaccine.PHE and NHS England have also developed an integrated marketing campaign, Stay Well This Winter. This campaign aims to help those with long-term health conditions (particularly respiratory conditions), those who are 65 or over, pregnant women and parents of under-5s stay well and keep their loved ones well this winter.

North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether the North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group is a pilot under the General Practitioners' Referral Management System.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients have been referred to the About Health Group from practices in the North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group under the General Practitioners' Referral Management System.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many patients referred to the About Health Group from practices in the North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group under the General Practitioners' Referral Management System were subsequently refused treatment.

Mr Alan Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how much is paid to the About Health Group for each patient referred by practices in the North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group under the General Practitioners' Referral Management System.

Ben Gummer: NHS North Tyneside Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has introduced a formal referral management system across a small number of clinical specialties. This is a local initiative and not part of a wider scheme. The data requested are not collected centrally. This is a matter for the North Tyneside CCG who can advise on data availability.

Maternity Services: Multiple Births

Sir Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, whether he plans for his Department's Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development Fund to be used to support efforts to reduce still births and neonatal deaths in multiple pregnancies.

Ben Gummer: There are no specific plans for the Innovation, Excellence and Strategic Development (IESD) fund to support efforts to reduce still births and neonatal deaths in multiple pregnancies. The IESD fund provides for funding for voluntary sector projects that are able to demonstrate a clear focus on supporting and driving forward new ideas, excellence or the undertaking of strategic developments in voluntary sector capacity and capability in health and care.The fund does not have a particular focus on reducing still births and neonatal deaths in multiple pregnancies, but aims to support projects with the potential to have national significance in any area of health and care, particularly where statutory services can be complemented and high quality health and care outcomes achieved.

NHS Protect

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, how many investigation NHS Protect have commenced into directors of NHS Trusts (a) nationally and (b) in Yorkshire in the last 18 months; and how many of those investigations are ongoing.

George Freeman: In the last 18 months NHS Protect has commenced three investigations into directors of National Health Service trusts. All three investigations are ongoing and further information cannot be given at this time.

NHS Protect

Diana Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what the average time is for NHS Protect to complete an investigation.

George Freeman: This information is not held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Home Care Services: Living Wage

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions he has had with home social care providers on the effect of the national living wage on the financial position of those providers; and if he will make a statement.

Alistair Burt: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 21 October 2015 to Question 11609.

Vedolizumab

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what estimate his Department has made of the number of people with both ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease who have benefitted from the use of vedolizumab as a treatment option since February 2015; and what the cost of this treatment has been in that period.

James Cartlidge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what progress has been made on tackling Crohn's disease.

Andrew Percy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of vedolizumab as a treatment for Crohn's disease.

George Freeman: Information is not collected centrally on the number of people prescribed medicines or the medical condition being treated.Some data is available for the administration of vedolizumab however this data does not correspond to patient numbers nor can it be linked to the treatment of specific diseases. Some information on cost is also available but this is the cost of the medicines at NHS list price and not necessarily the price that hospitals paid.In guidance published in August 2015, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) advised that vedolizumab is the recommended treatment for adults with moderate to severe Crohn’s disease if a type of treatment called a tumour necrosis factor alpha inhibitor is not suitable or has not worked well enough. NICE also recommend vedolizumab as a possible treatment for adults with moderate to severe ulcerative colitis in separate guidance published on 5 June 2015.In both cases, people should be able to have vedolizumab until it stops working, or surgery is needed, or for 12 months after starting it, whichever is shorter. Their condition should be assessed 12 months after they started taking vedolizumab. If they still have symptoms but it is clear that the treatment is helping, they can continue to have the drug. If they no longer have symptoms, treatment can be stopped, and later restarted if their symptoms return. Drugs recommended by NICE should be available on the NHS within three months of the technology appraisal guidance being issued.NICE has set out best practice in the diagnosis, treatment care and support of patients with Crohn’s diseases and ulcerative colitis in its guidance Crohn’s Disease Management in Adults, Children and Young People in October 2012, and Ulcerative Colitis Management in Adults, Children and Young People , published in June 2013. Treatment for both Crohn’s disease and ulcerative colitis is largely directed at symptom relief to improve quality of life, rather than cure. Management options include drug therapy, dietary and lifestyle advice and, in severe or chronic active disease, surgery.

Cancer: Drugs

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the (a) Bendamustine and (b) Ibrutinib drugs in treating cancer; and if he will make a statement.

George Freeman: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body which makes decisions on the clinical and cost effectiveness of products based on a thorough assessment of the best available evidence and in consultation with stakeholders. National Health Service commissioners are required to fund drugs and treatments recommended by NICE technology appraisals.Bendamustine (Levact) is recommended by NICE as a possible treatment for some people with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia of Binet stage B or C.NICE is currently appraising ibrutinib (Imbruvica) for the treatment of (i) chronic lymphocytic leukaemia (NICE’s final guidance is expected in June 2016) and (ii) mantle cell, relapsed, refractory lymphoma (NICE’s final guidance is expected in December 2016).